I’m having a tree removed that was badly infested with tree borers. I got your spray to protect my other trees and think they are okay but I didn’t realize the tree company would be leaving the stump in the ground! Now the arborist wants another $275 to take it out. We had termites a few years ago and we don’t see termites on this tree, just the borers. But what if I leave it? Will termites infest the stump? Its a pine about 2 feet wide and maybe 18-20 feet from the back corner of the house. My house had an exterior termite spray applied in ditches around the foundation a few years ago so no termites now. I plan on treating again with your stuff next spring so I think the house is okay for now. But I don’t feel like spending another $275 to remove the stump if I don’t have to but I don’t want termites either. Not sure what to do. Any suggestions?
In general, old stumps will be targeted by a range of insects. They’ll be drawn to the wood attempting to recycle it. TERMITES are one of the main insects responsible for decomposing old rotting wood but many others could be involved including CARPENTER ANTS and even SPRINGTAILS.
That said, if your home was properly treated with a recent termite application, you should be fine. In other words, even if termites were active on the stump, they shouldn’t be able to breach your home. But having them that close is probably not ideal so here’s a suggestion.
By any chance did you get some PROTHOR for the trees you mentioned you were going to treat? You should have noticed it listed in our PINE BEETLE ARTICLE and if you did get some, here’s an idea that might help you make your decision.
Prothor is actually a very good termiticide. This means if you were to apply a few gallons on and around the remaining stump, you’ll have a good treatment in place that will actually protect the wood from any wood destroying pest like termites. In general, Prothor is used as a systemic so that trees or plants you’re trying to protect will absorb it. As the Prothor is dispersed throughout the plants canopy, any insect attempting to feed on it will die in the process. Well that same protection will apply to your stump.
So if you apply Prothor on and around the stump, any insects that try to eat the wood or even live on it would be affected and die.
Remember, Prothor is non-repelling. This means insects won’t detect it and so they’ll move over treated surfaces and even eat wood that’s been sprayed without knowing the Prothor is present. Pests that colonize (like termites or ants) will actually bring some back to their nests. The Prothor will then be shared with others in the nest and in a week or two, affect most members if not all of them. Termites do live in colonies and sometimes, they figure out something is poisoning them so they’ll retreat before they all die. But either way, they’ll leave the area and are not likely to come back anytime soon.
In summary, you could effectively use the old stump as a giant TERMITE BAIT STATION. This would enable you to both avoid the extra cost of stump removal while reducing if not eliminating the threat of termites on your property. And if you already have some Prothor on hand from your order?? Well then we see a good way of avoiding the removal cost and putting some Prothor to good use!
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