All of the plants in your yard have a finite life cycle. From annual flowers in your flower pots to the oldest trees in your yard, planning for the future is key to getting the most out of your landscape. If you have any trees that are reaching the end of their life or have suffered damage from disease, you can have them removed and create an edible landscape.

Planning Is Key

Taking out an old tree and getting the stump taken out will take careful planning. The tree to be removed and the surrounding trees will need to be assessed for bees and other hazardous insects. Those bees, and any other insects or pests, will need to be moved before the tree removal process can begin.

It’s also crucial that you consider what trees or shrubs you will plant on your site. Getting the stump ground out will provide you with a lot of quality mulch, which you can use to protect new plants from drying out at the roots.

Talk with a professional arborist about any native fruit trees that would be a good addition to your yard. Make sure you also consider cross-pollination requirements so you can get a crop once the trees are established.

Harvest Considerations

Once a large or old tree has been taken out, stump removal is key. If you leave the stump, you can invite in hazards, such as invasive insects, who may try to make a home in the old stump. Mold and bacteria can also create a foothold in an abandoned stump.

The biggest problem with not fully removing a tree and grinding out the stump is that the stump can send up suckers, or young shoots, from the roots. Suckers can be quite invasive and will produce a brushy mess in your yard. You won’t get a good quality tree with a healthy trunk from suckers; instead, you will end up crowding out the fruit trees or shrubs you intended to plant.

Suckers or other brush growth around your new fruit trees can also make harvesting a challenge. If you’re not able to harvest as the fruits ripen, do your best not to neglect the fruit. Otherwise, it will simply drop and rot on the ground. Dropped fruit can draw flies, wasps and even hornets, which can make your yard a hazardous spot.

Increase the edible landscaping in your Dana Point, CA yard with tree removal, made easier with the help of our professionals at Luna Tree. Once that problem tree is out, pay careful attention to the new pattern of sunshine in the space and choose fruiting trees and shrubs that will add to the food security of your family.