Host an Event Volunteer Join Tickets

Support the plant database you love!

Q. Who is Mr. Smarty Plants?

A: There are those who suspect Wildflower Center volunteers are the culpable and capable culprits. Yet, others think staff members play some, albeit small, role. You can torture us with your plant questions, but we will never reveal the Green Guru's secret identity.

Help us grow by giving to the Plant Database Fund or by becoming a member

Did you know you can access the Native Plant Information Network with your web-enabled smartphone?

Share

Ask Mr. Smarty Plants

Ask Mr. Smarty Plants is a free service provided by the staff and volunteers at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center.

Search Smarty Plants
See a list of all Smarty Plants questions

Please forgive us, but Mr. Smarty Plants has been overwhelmed by a flood of mail and must take a break for awhile to catch up. We hope to be accepting new questions again soon. Thank you!

Need help with plant identification, visit the plant identification page.

 
rate this answer
Not Yet Rated

Tuesday - April 22, 2014

From: Maple Grove , MN
Region: Midwest
Topic: Planting, Trees
Title: Replacing river birch from Maple Grove MN
Answered by: Barbara Medford

QUESTION:

How soon after taking out a river birch clump tree and grinding the stump would we be able to plant a new birch clump?

ANSWER:

We are a little puzzled as to why the tree was initially removed and the roots ground out. According to our webpage on Betula nigra (River birch), this tree can grow from 30 to 90' in height and is a beautiful tree. Our webpage also says:

"Well-suited to areas that are periodically wet. Develops iron chlorosis on high pH soils. Chlorosis is more often due, however, to dryness. Trees in dry situations may defoliate, languish and die."

From the USDA Forest Service:

"The primary range of river birch is the southeastern quarter of the United States from eastern Texas and southeastern Iowa to Virginia and northern Florida. Scattered populations are found along rivers and streams as far north as southern Minnesota, central Wisconsin, and the middle New England States (8). Its northern limit in the Great Lakes region corresponds to the boundary of the terminal moraine of the Wisconsin glacier."

Our point to all of this is, why did the first River Birch have to be removed and its stump ground out? This USDA Plant Profile Map does not show the tree growing natively to Hennipin County, although it is reported in nearby Washington County. If there is a basic soil or soil moisture problem that caused the first tree to decline and be removed, those same conditons will still be present in that location and will not welcome the planting of the same tree. We would strongly recommend that you establish why the first tree came out before you plant another of the same type. If it was a soil, drainage, disease or moisture problem, those should be addressed before you spend the time and money putting the second one in.

We do not have any information on our website about stump grinding, so we went to this site from National Arborists: Stump Grinding. This makes no mention of how long you should wait after stump grinding before replanting.This member of the Mr. Smarty Plants Team has had one experience with stump grinding; this was in Central Texas where the soil does not freeze, as it probably does in Minnesota. This tree was an East Texas native, Liquidambar styraciflua (Sweetgum), which was a beautiful tree that had bright Fall foliage. However, it had very invasive roots that loved to live on the surface. As a result, it finally became necessary to eliminate the tree and replace the sidewalk and driveway that had been cracked by those roots. Once the tree and the grinder were gone we had so many other things to do that we left the bare empty bed exposed to the Texas heat for the summer. When Fall came with cooler weather, we dug into that dirt and discovered that the bed had become an improptu compost pile. The sawdust has spread out through the dirt and created a rich, easily worked soil. Because the tree was gone, there was plenty of sunlight for roses and other plants that needed lots of sun, which did beautifully. What we are saying is not to try to replant too quickly in that newly disturbed earth; let things settle down, get some water to it via sprinklers or rain and then stick your hand in and see what the texture is.

We do want to encourage you, though, to consult with a professonal arborist familiar with the plants, soils and climate of your area. If there was some disease present that killed the first birch, that arborist should be able to check the soil and make sure that disease is not still present to ambush the new plant.

 

 

From the Image Gallery


River birch
Betula nigra

River birch
Betula nigra

River birch
Betula nigra

More Planting Questions

Need an inexpensive blooming tree in Venus, TX
May 02, 2015 - I need a non expensive booming tree for our yard.
view the full question and answer

Landscape services in Austin
February 21, 2011 - I just bought a property in Austin with a terrific outdoor space. However, I came to find that the previous owner added jasmine and many other invasive species. I'd like to rid the entire space of th...
view the full question and answer

Transplanting Evergreen Sumac
December 09, 2015 - I would like to transplant evergreen sumac from my back to the front yard. They are about 6-8 foot tall. I live in El Paso, TX and it gets plenty of sunlight. I am wondering 1) Is November in El Paso,...
view the full question and answer

Why is my 3 year old Redbud not flowering in San Marcos, TX?
March 24, 2010 - My Cercis canadensis var. mexicana, purchased at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, is 3 years old, very robust, but has never bloomed. Any explanation?
view the full question and answer

Adding Wildflowers to Corpus Christi
May 20, 2012 - I have a dry sandy yard, full sun in Corpus Christi with lot's of stickers mostly, want to transform to wildflowers. When should I plant, how should I prepare soil, should I dig out stickers? Which w...
view the full question and answer

Support the Wildflower Center by Donating Online or Becoming a Member today.