Small Willow Tree Removal

Citroen2cv

Hi,

Is the tree in the below pic a willow tree?
I want to remove it, to make the driveway wider.
The trunk is about 8 inches diameter.
With a tree this size, would the roots spread out over a large area?

Im hoping just to cut the trunk close to the ground, and use tree stump remover chemical to help when it comes to digging the stump out.
Any advice appreciated.

Citroen2cv

looksee

Its hard to say but I would think it is probably not a willow. Does it have flowers, or what kind of leaves?

Citroen2cv

I have not been living in the house long, so have not seen the tree really during the summer.

johnayo

I had similar in my place a number of years ago. I dug it out as we were building an extension. It was fairly shallow rooted, and I just dug it out.

Oldtree

looksee wrote: »

Its hard to say but I would think it is probably not a willow. Does it have flowers, or what kind of leaves?

and picture of the buds and bark and stem if poss please too

Its in the shape of a grafted kilmarnock willow but seems to be doing far to well, maby an weeping ornamental pear?

Hoof Hearted2

Citroen2cv wrote: »

Hi,

Is the tree in the below pic a willow tree?
I want to remove it, to make the driveway wider.
The trunk is about 8 inches diameter.
With a tree this size, would the roots spread out over a large area?

Im hoping just to cut the trunk close to the ground, and use tree stump remover chemical to help when it comes to digging the stump out.
Any advice appreciated.

What does it matter what species or variety the tree is if you're going to kill it, where the roots go or have been is of no relevance as when you put in the new driveway you will be digging out that ground.
Also there no such thing as tree stump removal chemical, there is however tree stump killer available.

Citroen2cv

Hoof Hearted2 wrote: »

What does it matter what species or variety the tree is if you're going to kill it, where the roots go or have been is of no relevance as when you put in the new driveway you will be digging out that ground.
Also there no such thing as tree stump removal chemical, there is however tree stump killer available.

My query was more just to find how big the root system would be.

Marhay70

From the shape, it could be a Kilmarnock Willow. I dug one out a couple of years ago and, like yourself, didn't know what the root system would be like but it was fine. I live in an area where the water table is quite high and that could be an explanation but certainly none of the roots were more than about 35mm diameter. My tree was about ten years old.

macraignil

Citroen2cv wrote: »

My query was more just to find how big the root system would be.

As a general rule the area of root will be approximately the same as the area of the plant above ground.

I have read that if you put caustic soda into holes you can drill in a tree stump it helps the stump breakdown faster. Not sure how long that takes so if you are going to build the driveway soon it might be best to just dig it out.

Hoof Hearted2

macraignil wrote: »

As a general rule the area of root will be approximately the same as the area of the plant above ground.

I have read that if you put caustic soda into holes you can drill in a tree stump it helps the stump breakdown faster. Not sure how long that takes so if you are going to build the driveway soon it might be best to just dig it out.

The conventional wisdom was that the root system mirrored the canopy of the tree, this has long since been debunked, it is now understood that it it far greater than that, somewhere in the region of twice the canopy, and there is evidence to support that.

Caustic soda (or any other substance) won't make the stump breakdown any faster, all they do is kill it and prevent regrowth.

macraignil

Hoof Hearted2 wrote: »

The conventional wisdom was that the root system mirrored the canopy of the tree, this has long since been debunked, it is now understood that it it far greater than that, somewhere in the region of twice the canopy, and there is evidence to support that.

Caustic soda (or any other substance) won't make the stumpo breakdown any faster, all they do is kill it and prevent regrowth.

Can you provide more details of this evidence you talk about?

I know there will be exceptions but I have seen plants (in containers particularly) that have an overground size far in excess of the root ball. I also would expect some plants to have bigger roots. Isn't the convention just an approximation and variation either way is normal?

GrumpyMe

Q: Is the tree in the below pic a willow tree?
A: As said before, looks like a Kilmarnock Willow.

Q: I want to remove it, to make the driveway wider.
A: Ah! Poor tree - looks like a healthy mature well kept specimen - sure you couldn't keep it maybe move it somewhere else?

Q: With a tree this size, would the roots spread out over a large area?
A: Who knows exactly. It would depend on conditions. If moisture was hard to come by the roots would spread trying to find it and visa versa. You can be pretty sure it won't have root bigger than 4cm or 5cm out beyond the radius of the canopy and they will be tapering out as the go.

Q: Im hoping just to cut the trunk close to the ground, and use tree stump remover chemical to help when it comes to digging the stump out.
A: If you are going to murder:) the tree and you want to get rid of the evidence by digging out the stump then:
Cut the trunk as near the crown as possible, loosen the soil around the tree and use the trunk as a lever. Archimedes said give me a lever long enough and a fulcrum on which to place it, and I shall move the world. You won't lever it out at first. you should be able to work out where to dig to find the main roots. Don't go putting corrosive, dangerous, toxic chemicals down to kill the stump - just remove it (it's not a giant redwood!)! :rolleyes: