By Hefarey
United Kingdom 
Hello. I have just chopped down 3 large conifer trees and want to know how to get rid of stumps and root balls as well as condition surrounding compacted soil ready for planting with flowers and veg. Do potatoe plants help break up the soil? I know digging is one option but i am unable to dig due to a back injury and hoped there was something i could plant to break up the soil.
2 Aug, 2010
Answers
You can hire a stumpgrinder yourself to grind the stumps down, but it is very hard work, and you're left with all the debris afterwards. Otherwise call a tree surgeon - they usually have someone with a stumpgrinder who can come in and do this for you, and remove all the mess as well. Depending on how large the conifers actually were though, it might be possible to dig them out.
2 Aug, 2010
Previous question
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I can't advise on getting rid of the stumps, unless you hire in a professional with a stump grinder but you can use the "no dig" method to condition your soil. By putting loads of compost/manure etc. on top of the area where you want to plant, the worms will drag it down into the soil for you. It will take some time but you can still plant into the compost in the mean time!
2 Aug, 2010