Freeda,
I'm not a tree expert, but I think I have a surefire way to kill the tree and all the roots at the same time. Let's see what other advice you may get on this post, and then if you still want to kill it (without harming your hostas), I'll tell you how. Don

Where's Jamie when you need him??

same advice i gave over in the tree forum ... a liberal application of the chaisaw.. at or above ground level, followed my a liberal application of roundup to the cambian layer of the stump ....

maples are park/golf course trees ... along with willow and poplar and mulberry .... beautiful trees in and of themselves... if you want to garden under them ... they win .. you and your hosta lose ... period ....

you need some nice oak trees .... i got mine from van wade... 6 to 8 foot bare root in april ... in 2000 ... some are growing 3 to 5 feet per year.. going on 25 feet 6 years later ... its an old wives tail that oaks are slow growers ....

you know what you have to do .. if you want to grow hosta.. now go do the right thing ....

good luck

ken

Hi Freeda,
My answer is about your hosta's.
If you are truely in the heart of Chicago your hosta's should have some protection from the houses. Depending on which way your street runs. With the houses so close together there should be somewhere and sometime they are sheltered from the sun. It's a job to move mature plants but this may give you an opportunity to rearrange your yard. Ken's idea of an Oak is a perfect. Head over to the nearest Home Depot in the spring and get a bargin on one. If your close to the Loop North Ave HD is perfect. A busy store which brings in fresh product by the truck loads. By mid April the stores will have product to pick from.
Grew up in the city and live in the Burbs just miles away from the Chicago boarder. The city still takes my breath away especially driving on Lake Shore Drive.
GO Bears!

I have mostly oaks but some other trees too. We have cut down many scrub trees. Three to five years later I am still cutting down volunteers that come up from the roots. I have read about chemicals that could kill stumps, but I hesitate to use them. I do not want to kill the hosta etc. around the stumps. I will be curious to see what the consensus is on how long the roots will continue to give off volunteers. I did not see the entry on the tree forum, but are you sure the Hosta, given more water perhaps, won't do just fine with out a tree at all? From what I have read here more sun will help them recover fast.

It seems to be a simple deduction that once the tree is gone, leaves are no longer transpiring moisture, and feeder roots no longer thirsting for it. They will slowly die off. I say go for it before it becomes a bigger project.

Ten years ago, we removed 2 monster willows flush to the ground. The roots must have been spread far and wide but I've never found any. Hosta grow well there now.

Three years ago, a silver maple was removed from my parkway and the stump was ground out, no suckering there either.

Hey guys! Thanks ...

Ken - thanks again for the added info ... I know what I want/have to do, just looking for more 'thumbs up' & support on cutting it down cause folks that don't know hostas think I'm really stupid for considering this.
Maryann - thanks for the root info - good to know!
Don - ok, you've peaked my curiosity ... what's your trick?

here's one of them ... a good 6-8' across. I'm not deep in the city, but this sure wouldn't fit in any gangway!

I tried posting the pic directly here, but got the big red x -

Here is a link that might be useful: Blue Angel

I also have some maples that will hopefully be GONE by spring--just waiting for some nicer weather. (it's in the zeros this week!) I would love to also hear Don's secret. I am sick of fighting ROOTS and will be replacing the maples with other trees. I planted 2 oaks last year and hope that the slow grow is a wives tale.
Cheryl

Essentially, Ken is right- apply Round-Up to the trunk of the tree. The key is to get enough Round-Up at a high enough concentration down to the roots to kill everything so there aren't any suckers sprouting up. You will read in the Round-Up instructions that it can be used for "Woody Brush and Trees." It says, "Apply this product when trees are actively growing and after full leaf expansion. Use the higher rate for stronger plants and/or denser areas of growth...Best results are obtained when application is made in late summer or fall after fruit formation." The Round-Up booklet also has a section titled "Cut Stump Treatments" which says, "Apply this product using suitable equipment to ensure coverage of the entire cambium...Apply a 50 to 100 percent solution of this product [Round-Up Original concentrate] to the freshly-cut surface immediately after cutting...For best results, applications should be made during periods of active growth and full leaf expansion."
If you apply a strong concentration of Round-Up and it covers enough of the cambium layer of the tree during its active growth, it will kill it. Personally, what I do is wait until fall when all of the sap is being sucked downward into the roots. I cover up all the hostas growing under the tree with a plastic drop cloth. Then I paint as much of the trunk as I can reach with Round-Up concentrate (Original, Super Concentrate, or Round-Up Ultimate,which is the strongest). You can paint the trunk with a thick coat a few times throughout the fall. Or I've had very good result simply by taking one or two old towels, soaking them in Round-Up concentrate, and wrapping them around the tree trunk. Then I take shrink wrap (such as Saran Wrap) and wrap overtop the towels to keep the Round-Up from drying out. Your tree will be as dead as a doornail next spring and then you can remove the old towels. That's how I do it. Don

Morning Don ... I'm not real smart when it comes to trees ... does your method do something more to attack the root or sucker problem? I mean, why not just cut the tree down, then treat the stump? Or are you suggesting I leave the tree and just kill it? Hmmm ... maybe we're on to something here ... tie some silk leaves to the branches ... may-be ... ??? still got my shade and NO raking in the fall!! ;)

Except freeda, dead trees fall over. I had cleared a patch leaving one smaller tree for shade and planted my hosta bed. The tree died, no apparent reason. I planted another along side it and then tried to train a wild vine to climb the dead tree as an experiment and for interum shade. Last year just as the vine was looking like a tree it all fell over. It was only a 10 foot skinny tree and only fell in my hosta bed but still, falling trees can be dangerous.

Just joshing, arcy :)
I just didn't understand why Don goes thru all the painting and wrapping of a live tree rather than just cutting it down ...

It is the Round Up on the wet cambium that does the trick. As don r stated, it must be applied within 20 minutes to the fresh cut. Round Up on the bark of a tree will do nothing, sorry. If it did, my tree that has a glorious vine called Poison Ivy would have been dead years ago.

This is also the way to eliminate Honeysuckle shrub/vine growth on your property. Apply the RU to the freshly cut stump and no more Honeysuckle. It is a much easier way to eliminate that pest rather than trying to spray the foliage.

I have removed a way-to-large Maple from our front yard:(well, not personaly) yes, rid yourself of this beast.

Have the stump ground by a pro, or rent some equipment. No more maple, no suckers, just a little pile of raw mulch and a depression in the ground that you fill with compost and re-plant with anything you desire.

Stump grinding: More costly than Round Up, but worth it.

Would this also work for wild grapes?? Painting on fresh cuts??
Cheryl

If you apply the full-strength Round Up in early fall when the tree begins to draw sap down into the roots, then you can cut the tree down in late fall or winter. If you want to cut it down before that, wait until it's fully leafed out, then cut it down and apply the full-strength Round Up. I doubt you'll have any suckers from the stump.
I have a lot of aspens around the perimeter of my flower gardens. They're very invasive, always sending out a lot of surface roots that sprout up with new saplings. I uncover the root, cut it in two, wrap a rag saturated with Round Up around the freshly cut ends and slide a plastic baggies over them. A couple weeks later I pull off the baggy and rag and the root is dead. Works for me. Don

Don, if I did that to the thick roots of my neighbor's maple that have slithered over to my yard, would my neighbor's tree die? I just want to arrest the roots that sneak (or should I say gallup?) under the fence to steal my water.

maryann - if you treat the roots on your side, your neighbor's tree will partially die. It will only affect that portion of the tree connected to that root.

maidofshade - yes, it works on wildd grapevine too.

I don't necessarily agree with taking out the maple tree. For me it depends on the variety. I have a sugar maple that I would never consider removing. It is a beautiful tree with great fall color. It casts quite dense shade, but I do grow hostas and other shade tolerant plants under it. What I've learned from others is to water and fertilize the whole area, not just the hostas. If you start with a large planting hole and a good-sized plant, it will compete successfully with the tree roots if given enough water.

On the other hand, if the tree is a silver maple I would not hesitate to take it out, the sooner the better. The roots of silver maples actively seek water and the tree's wood is soft. It has no redeeming value.

Mark

OK ... I just found the receipt from this tree ... it's a Superform Norway Maple, and here's what's said about it ...
This cultivar of Norway Maple has a height and spread of 40 to 50 feet. The rounded crown is very uniform and fills with greenish-yellow flowers in the spring. Norway Maple's dense shade and [b]shallow root system competes with lawn grasses, and the shallow roots can make mowing under the tree difficult. The shallow roots can heave sidewalks so be certain to locate the tree at least four to six feet away.[/b] ... thanks-a-lot, Sid's Greenhouse ... :(

I'd love suggestions for its replacement - small size please. Thanks!!