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Small gardens are routine. What is not routine is a garden a machine cannot physically get into, and those are two different things that get confused.
The Measurement That Decides It
Not the size of the garden, not the size of the stump. The narrowest point anywhere on the route from where a vehicle can park to where the stump is.
- Around 70 to 80 centimetres — a narrow-access machine will generally go through. This is a standard side gate and covers most terraced and semi-detached properties
- Under about 65 centimetres — getting difficult. Sometimes possible by taking a gate off its hinges, which is worth mentioning because people rarely think of it
- Steps — a serious obstacle. A grinder is heavy, and steps usually mean either ramping or not at all
- Through the house — not with a grinder
Measure between the actual narrowest points, which are usually the gate posts rather than the gate opening, and include anything fixed in the passage — a meter box, a drainpipe, a water butt.
What Else Matters in a Confined Space
- Throw. A grinder throws chippings and the occasional stone further than expected. In a small garden everything is within range, so screening and boarding is part of the job
- Glass. Greenhouses, conservatories, cold frames and patio doors all need protecting or, better, standing well clear
- Ponds. Grindings in a pond are a genuine problem. Cover it
- Ground protection. A machine tracking over a lawn or a patio needs boards on soft or finished surfaces
- Neighbours. Grinding is loud and it lasts an hour or two. A word in advance goes a long way in a terrace
If a Machine Genuinely Cannot Get There
There are real cases — a first-floor flat garden, a basement courtyard, a garden reached only through a neighbour who will not agree. The honest options then are:
- Cut the stump flush and leave it. Perfectly acceptable in a border or a corner. It decays over years, and it is good for wildlife in the meantime
- Hand dig it out. Possible, heavy, and usually more expensive than grinding would have been. Reasonable for a small stump; hard work on a large one
- Cut flush and plant over or around it. A container, a raised bed or planting to one side works well and costs almost nothing
- Cut low and disguise it. Not everyone's answer, but a flush stump under a pot or a bench is a solved problem rather than an unsolved one
Decide the stump before the tree comes down, not after. If grinding is not going to be possible, that may change whether you want the tree removed at all, or how low the stump is cut. It is a much better conversation to have at quotation stage.
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Measure the narrowest point on the route from the road to the stump, including any gate posts, and send the number with your enquiry.
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