Monday the weather was great and Doug's Trimming Service had the tree down by midafternoon. Verdie has a look of confidence as he poses with the mighty walnut stump.
Tuesday morning brought a minor setback with cold weather and frosty ground so we went out to Lyle's and talked about our plans to dig and saw the next day. Late in the afternoon, winter arrived once againwith about
four inches of the white stuff. Here you see Verdie with a snow covered stump
(he still shows a great of confidence in regards to accomplishing the task ahead.
four inches of the white stuff. Here you see Verdie with a snow covered stump
(he still shows a great of confidence in regards to accomplishing the task ahead. Wednesday morning we were ready to go but the hard frost in the ground was not yet ready to release its grip. Neither was the Great Stump. Some snow removal helped the sun get to the stone hard soil but still the shovel met hard resistance despite our diligent efforts. Now we were down to only three days to conquer the Great Walnut Stump.
Wednesday Afternoon The shovels had made some progress but the ground was still stone hard so we got out the garden hose in hopes some warmer water would loosen the dirt for Thursday morning.
Thursday The soaking water helped loosen the stone hard soil little and we were able to do some heavy diggingwhich was enough to expose some of the major roots. They would now run up against the brand new electric three horse chain saw operated by Verdie. 
Friday: Keith was now getting down to using a
buck saw, a trowel and various garden implements. The ground was getting a little softer but as we sawed the major roots we found plenty of minor roots going deep into the ground. We had heard about tap roots but were told sometimes walnut trees did not have one. We were soon to find out that this tree did not want to leave it's cozy location. It was time for the John Deere tractor.
buck saw, a trowel and various garden implements. The ground was getting a little softer but as we sawed the major roots we found plenty of minor roots going deep into the ground. We had heard about tap roots but were told sometimes walnut trees did not have one. We were soon to find out that this tree did not want to leave it's cozy location. It was time for the John Deere tractor. Saturday: By now we were getting very close to accomplishing our mission. We had called in reinforcements with the 1938 Model john Deere tractor. The first pulls met with great resistance and we were looking for more advice. Verdies grandson Eric called from MIT and Grandpa stayed in the hole. He asked Eric the engineering student and crosscut saw expert for any advice. Eric thought that some more digging and sawing might do the job. We had a few more hours of daylight so we went for the tap root. 
