Creative Ways to Hide a Tree Stump

It’s not always easy to get rid of a pesky tree stump in your yard. Removal can be costly, labour-intensive, and pulling up a stump with extensive roots can sometimes cause more harm than good. That leaves you with an unattractive eyesore on your lawn. So, the question remains, what to do with tree stumps?

When it comes to how to hide a tree stump, we’ve got good news. There are many fun, and creative ways to do so, from incorporating a stump into your landscape to turning it into an artistic feature or even slyly hiding it among your plants.

Why Hide a Tree Stump?

The most obvious reason to hide a tree stump is simply because it doesn’t look good. A bare stump in the middle of an otherwise well-kept landscape is an obvious blemish that takes away from all the hard work you’ve put into your property.

Hiding a tree stump will increase your yard's visual appeal and could enhance your home's value. It’s also a great way to reclaim your landscaping space in a creative way. Finally, if you’re on a tight budget, hiding a tree stump rather than removing it is usually more cost-effective than hiring a company for removal.

What to Do with Tree Stumps: Creative Ways to Hide a Tree Stump

If you’ve decided that your tree stump is staying put, the next order of business is to figure out how to hide a tree stump. Fortunately, there are a lot of great options to choose from.

Landscaping Ideas to Hide a Tree Stump

Instead of trying to work around a pesky tree stump, consider incorporating it naturally into your landscaping design. Think of this as an opportunity to show off your creativity and design chops.

• Create a Planter: Hollow out the centre of the stump, fill it with soil, and plant flowers or small shrubs into the base.
• Build a Fairy Garden: Use the stump as a base for a fantastical and beautiful miniature landscape. Add tiny houses, fairy figurines, and small plants to create a magical scene.
• Create a Rock Garden: Arrange decorative rocks around the stump. You can also incorporate plants or mosses into your rock garden design.
• Showcase Art: Use the stump as a stage and mount a beautiful sculpture, sundial, or other pieces of art that will draw visitors’ attention.
• Construct a Seating Area: If your stump is high enough, attach a circular wooden top to the trunk and arrange rustic chairs around your new outdoor seating area.
• Add a Water Feature: If you really want to go above and beyond, convert the stump into a small fountain or waterfall.
• Install a Birdbath: One of the easiest landscaping ideas to hide tree stumps is to place a birdbath on the stump. Now, you can look out your window and watch colourful birds flock and frolic around the bath.

How to Hide a Tree Stump with Plants

Another great way to keep your tree stump out of view is planting around tree stumps. The right plants can fully or mostly cover your stump or work around the stump in a way that feels natural and cohesive.

• Plant Climbing Vines: English ivy, clematis, and Virginia creeper are great options for planting near your stump. As the plants grow, train their vines to cover or wrap around the stump.
• Create a Moss Garden: Many parts of Canada offer the cool, wet conditions that mosses love. Add moss to the base of your stump or around the stump to create an enchanting visual.
• Build Raised Flower Beds: Surround your stump with wooden planks, fill them with soil, and plant your favourite local flowers in the beds. Soon, your stump will be hidden amongst the colourful blooms.
• Plant Shade-Loving Perennials: Certain plants can do well in the shady area around a stump, including hostas, ferns, or astilbe.
• Create a Woodland Garden: You can plant nearly anything around your stump. We recommend native woodland species that work well in your climate and will help cover the stump. Consider what will look good with your existing landscape.

Covering a Tree Stump with Soil

Don’t have the time or desire to take on a new landscaping or planting project in order to obscure your tree stump from view? Another tempting option is to cover the tree stump with soil. You can absolutely do this, but it’s important to know the drawbacks.

Cut the tree stump as low as possible to the ground, cover it in mulch, and then add soil over the top. To encourage the decomposition process, drill holes in the top and sides of the stump and fill them with high-nitrogen fertilizer before covering the stump.

Over time, the stump will decompose while grass or plants grow over the surface. However, this process won’t happen overnight. It takes years for stumps to decompose. In the meantime, you’ll have to deal with a raised area in your yard that could represent a tripping hazard and make yard work more difficult.

Know Your Tree Stump Options

What to do with tree stumps? The answer isn’t to ignore the stump or just resign yourself to a big eyesore in the middle of your lawn. Instead, you have plenty of creative ways to hide a tree stump on your property. From fairy gardens to birdbaths and cool mosses, the only limit is your creativity.

However, if you don’t want to deal with your stump, you can always opt for stump removal. The Grounds Guys® offer commercial and residential stump removal services. Our local teams of lawn care and landscape experts are located throughout Canada. They know exactly how to remove a stump from your land, including the roots, or grind down the stump so that you won’t have a major tripping hazard on your property.

To get started, request a free estimate today!

This article is intended for general guidance only and is not applicable to every situation. You are responsible for determining the proper course of action for your property and situation. The Grounds Guys are not responsible for any damages that occur as a result of advice and/or guidance derived from its blog content.

The Grounds Guys services may vary by location. Please contact The Grounds Guys franchise nearest you for more information.