Stumped? Unique Ways To Dress Up Tree Stumps

7 July 2015
 Categories: , Blog

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If you have recently had some trees removed from your property, or if the previous owner had left you with some tree stumps, there are several options you can use in having them removed or repurposed. Many people opt to have a professional tree service, like Buskirk Tree Service, come to their home to have the stumps ground down so they are no longer giving the yard an unattractive appearance. There are also always the options to dig them out, use chemicals to disintegrate them or burn them down to ash. Another popular idea is to try to reuse tree stumps by decorating them so they fit into your landscape. Here are some ideas to use with your own tree stumps.

Make Flower Planters

Use your tree stumps as flower planters to give your property a festive look. Simply drill holes into the top of each stump so the wood inside becomes weakened. Pick out larger pieces by hand and use a small power saw to help carve out harder to remove pieces. Once most of the inside of each stump is removed, pour some potting soil inside. Plant colorful flowers in each stump.

Make A Game

Sand down the top of a tree stump with an electric sander until the surface is smooth to the touch. Paint the surface in a bright color and allow it to dry. Use a ruler and chalk to make a checkerboard on top of the painted stump. Paint the small squares white and black. Gather stones from around the yard and paint some of them white and others black. These can be used as checkers. Use smaller stones for single checkers and switch to larger stones when a checker becomes a king. 

To make chess pieces, use a small paintbrush to paint wording on the stones with corresponding piece names, such as queen, rook and pawn. Keep the stones near the stump to be used when you feel like challenging someone to an outdoor game.

Create Unique Seating

Consider carving out tree stumps to appear as small chairs in your yard. This is done by drilling holes into the top part of each stump to help weaken the bulk of the wood inside. Keep drilling holes until you are able to pull out pieces of wood by hand. Use a chainsaw to take out a chunk on the side of each stump, giving it the appearance of a small chair.

Continue removing the wood from the middle portion using a small ax. When most of it is gone, use a sander to smooth down the interior of the stump. This is the back and sides of your "chair." When you finish sanding, paint the interior of your chair in a fun color and add a coating of polyurethane to seal it.