Stump grinding glossary

77 stump, tree and yard terms in plain English. Each one links to its source.

A

Amur honeysuckle: Amur honeysuckle (Lonicera maackii) is one of the bush honeysuckles, and Ohio lists it as an invasive plant under Ohio Administrative Code rule 901:5-30-01.
Arboriculture: Arboriculture is the care of individual trees, from selection and planting through mature tree care and risk assessment, and the International Society of Arboriculture publishes tree care guidance for the public.
Arborist: An arborist is a professional who cares for trees. TreesAreGood.org describes arborists as people knowledgeable in the care needed to sustain a tree's life and long-term benefits.
Armillaria root rot: Armillaria root rot, also called shoestring root rot, is a fungal disease that often kills trees and shrubs, and its fungi can spread through the soil from decaying stumps and roots.
Ash tree: An ash tree is a native North American tree that emerald ash borer attacks, and the beetle left few ash trees standing in southwest Ohio after it reached Hamilton County in 2007.

B

Backfill: Backfill is soil used to refill a hole, such as the hole left after a stump is ground and its chips are removed.
Below grade: Below grade means below the level of the surrounding ground, so a stump ground below grade sits under the soil surface instead of sticking up above it.
Bush ash: Bush ash is a thicket of new multi-stemmed shoots that grows from the base of a dead ash tree or stump, as seen in southwest Ohio after emerald ash borer.
Buttress roots: Buttress roots are large, wide roots near the base of a tree that flare out from the trunk and help hold the tree upright.

C

Carbide teeth: Carbide teeth are hard metal cutting tips fitted to the cutter wheel of a stump grinder, built to bite into wood and last through many stumps.
Carbon-to-nitrogen ratio: The carbon-to-nitrogen ratio compares how much carbon a material holds to how much nitrogen it holds, and wood has a high ratio that robs soil nitrogen as it rots.
Carpenter ants: Carpenter ants are large dark insects that nest in damp or moisture-compromised wood. Unlike termites, they do not eat the wood of trees, stumps or buildings.
Cut-stump treatment: A cut-stump treatment is cutting a shrub off close to the ground and applying herbicide to the cut surface, which Ohio State University describes for controlling bush honeysuckle.
Cutter wheel: The cutter wheel is the large spinning disc on a stump grinder that carries the cutting teeth and does the work of chewing through the stump.

D

D-shaped exit hole: A D-shaped exit hole is the small hole an adult emerald ash borer leaves in the bark of an ash tree when it emerges from the wood.
Debris shield: A debris shield is a guard or barrier placed around a grinding area to catch flying chips, rocks and soil and keep them off people, windows and cars.
Digging out a stump: Digging out a stump means trenching around it, cutting the roots with a saw and prying the stump from the ground, which Iowa State Extension says suits smaller stumps.
Drop-off site: A yard trimmings drop-off site is a public location where residents leave brush and branches to be composted or mulched, such as Hamilton County's three sites.

E

Emerald ash borer: Emerald ash borer is a metallic green wood-boring beetle from Asia whose larvae feed under the bark of ash trees and have killed tens of millions of them in North America.
Epsom salt method: The Epsom salt method is a home trick of filling drilled holes with Epsom salt to dry out or rot a stump, and extension sources do not back it.
Excavation (Ohio law): Ohio Revised Code 3781.25(I) defines excavation as using hand tools, powered equipment or explosives to move earth, rock or other materials in order to penetrate, bore or drill into the earth.

F

Flush cut: A flush cut leaves the stump level with the surrounding ground, so the wood is cut off at the soil line instead of being ground away below it.
Fungi on stumps: Stump fungi are living organisms, such as mushrooms and conks, that break down dead wood, and they are the main reason a stump rots over time.

G

Girdling root: A girdling root is a root that wraps around the trunk or other roots, usually at or below ground level, and can slowly squeeze and choke the tree.
Grinding depth: Grinding depth is how far below the soil surface the grinder cuts the stump, which can range from level with the ground to more than a foot down.

H

Hardwood and softwood: Hardwood trees are broadleaf trees such as oak and maple, and softwood trees are conifers such as pine, and the names do not describe how hard the wood is.
Heartwood and sapwood: Sapwood is the living outer wood of a trunk that carries water, and heartwood is the dead inner core that gives the tree strength.
Hillside tree rules: Hillside tree rules are local rules that can cover tree removal on slopes. Covington, Kentucky, may regulate private trees on hillsides where removal could affect slope stability or drainage.
Historic overlay zone: A historic overlay zone is a mapped area with added rules. In Covington, Kentucky, trees on private property can fall under city rules inside such a zone.
Honeysuckle: Bush honeysuckle, including Amur, Morrow and Tartarian honeysuckle, is a group of non-native upright shrubs that invade Ohio forests and yards.

I

Invasive plant: An invasive plant is a non-native plant that spreads and harms native plants. Ohio's director of agriculture names specific invasive plants by rule to protect native plant species.
ISA Certified Arborist: An ISA Certified Arborist is a tree care professional who holds a voluntary, nongovernmental certification from the International Society of Arboriculture and must keep learning to maintain it.

K

Kentucky 811: Kentucky 811 is a not-for-profit one-call center run by member utilities that alerts them to dig sites so they can mark their buried lines.

L

Lateral roots: Lateral roots are roots that spread sideways from the base of a tree, mostly in the top foot or so of soil, often far past the edge of the canopy.
Locate ticket: A locate ticket is the excavation notification filed with OHIO811, which sends it to registered utilities so they can mark their lines before digging begins.

M

Minimum charge: A minimum charge is the lowest price a company will take for a job, set so that travel and setup are covered even when the stump is small.
Mulch: Mulch is a layer of material, often wood chips or bark, spread over soil to hold moisture, slow weeds and keep the ground cooler in summer.

N

Natural decay: Natural decay is the slow rotting of a stump left alone, as fungi and other organisms break the wood down over several years or longer.
Nitrogen tie-up: Nitrogen tie-up happens when decaying wood takes nitrogen from the soil, leaving less for grass or new plants growing in the same spot.

O

OHIO811: OHIO811 is the Ohio service that sends excavation notices to registered utilities so they can mark buried lines, and Ohio law sets notice windows before digging.

P

Per-inch pricing: Per-inch pricing sets the price of grinding a stump by its diameter in inches, measured across the widest point, so larger stumps cost more.
Positive response: Positive Response is the OHIO811 system that keeps utility owners and excavators in touch about each ticket so both sides know the status of a locate request.
Private utility line: A private utility line is a buried line owned by the property owner, such as power to a shed or lamppost, which OHIO811 says may not be marked.
PTO stump grinder: A PTO stump grinder is a grinder attachment that mounts on a tractor and gets its power from the tractor's power take-off shaft instead of its own engine.
Public tree work permit: A public tree work permit is city permission to prune, remove or plant a tree on public land, such as the permit Cincinnati requires for trees in the right-of-way.

R

Resprouting: Resprouting is new shoot growth from the stump or roots of a plant that was cut down, and cutting alone often increases it in bush honeysuckle.
Right-of-way: A right-of-way is public land beside a street that cities manage, and in Cincinnati the city maintains street trees and any trees growing in a right-of-way.
Root flare: The root flare, also called the trunk flare, is the wider part at the base of a trunk where it spreads out to meet the roots.

S

Sod: Sod is grass sold in rolled or cut strips with its roots and a thin layer of soil attached, laid over bare ground to make an instant lawn.
Soil compaction: Soil compaction is soil pressed so tightly that its pore spaces shrink, which slows the movement of air, water and roots through the ground.
Soil settling: Soil settling is the slow sinking of the ground over a ground stump as buried wood rots and leaves empty space where the roots and stump used to be.
Street tree: A street tree is a tree on public land along a street, usually between the sidewalk and the curb, and cities such as Covington and Cincinnati manage them.
Stump: A stump is the part of a tree trunk and its roots left in the ground after the tree is cut down.
Stump burning: Stump burning is burning a stump out in place. University of Illinois Extension says to check local ordinances first, and Iowa State Extension lists burning as a method to avoid.
Stump diameter: Stump diameter is the width of a stump across its widest point, usually measured in inches, and it is the number most grinding quotes depend on.
Stump grinder: A stump grinder is a machine with a spinning wheel fitted with cutting teeth that chews a tree stump into chips, working down from the top of the stump.
Stump grinder rental: Stump grinder rental means paying a rental yard by the hour, day or week to run a grinder yourself instead of hiring a company to do the job.
Stump grinding: Stump grinding uses a machine with a spinning, toothed wheel to chew a tree stump and its large upper roots into wood chips, usually to several inches below the soil.
Stump grindings: Stump grindings are the mix of wood chips and soil left in the hole after a stump is ground, also called shavings, and they affect what grows there.
Stump killer: Stump killer is a chemical product sold to speed stump decay or stop regrowth. Iowa State Extension says these products are often fertilizer, such as potassium or sodium nitrates.
Stump removal: Stump removal means getting rid of a tree stump, and often its main roots, by grinding it, digging it out, or letting it rot over time.
Stump sprout: A stump sprout is a new shoot that grows from a cut stump or its roots, driven by the energy the tree stored before it was cut.
Subterranean termite: A subterranean termite is a soil-dwelling termite. University of Kentucky entomologists call these termites serious pests of buildings that usually warrant attention by a professional.
Sucker: A sucker is a shoot that grows from a tree's roots or base instead of from a branch, and it can keep appearing for years after a tree is cut or a stump is ground.
Surface roots: Surface roots are roots that grow at or just under the soil surface in a lawn, where they can trip people, block mowers and show above the grass.

T

Taproot: A taproot is a single thick root that grows straight down, and while many young trees start with one, most mature landscape trees rely on spreading side roots.
Topsoil: Topsoil is the dark, loose top layer of soil that holds most of the nutrients, and it is used to fill a hole before seeding or laying sod.
Tracked stump grinder: A tracked stump grinder rides on rubber or steel tracks that spread weight and grip soft or sloped ground, while a wheeled grinder rides on tires.
Tree canopy: Tree canopy is the area of a city that trees shade when seen from above. Dayton says 70 to 80 percent of its canopy is on private property.
Tree City USA: Tree City USA is an annual national recognition program from the Arbor Day Foundation that raises awareness of community trees and sets foundational standards for communities of all sizes.
Tree lawn: The tree lawn is the strip of grass between the sidewalk and the street where street trees grow. Cincinnati 311 uses the term for city-maintained public trees.
Tree removal: Tree removal means cutting a tree down, which usually leaves a stump. ISA says removing trees, especially large ones, can be dangerous work and can be expensive.
Tree service: A tree service is a company that prunes, removes and cares for trees. TreesAreGood.org says tree work should be done only by those trained and equipped to work safely.
Turf-friendly machine: A turf-friendly stump grinder is a machine built to cross a lawn with little damage to the grass, usually by spreading its weight on rubber tracks or tires.

U

Urban forestry: Urban forestry is the care of the trees within a city, on public and private land. Dayton defines an urban forest as all trees within a city.

W

Wood chips: Wood chips are the small pieces of stump and root that a grinder leaves behind in and around the hole after a stump is ground.

Y

Yard waste: Yard waste is leaves, grass and small branches collected apart from trash. Cincinnati lists logs or stumps thicker than 6 inches among items its collection does not take.