How close can you plant a tree to a stump? But you can plant your new tree near an old tree’s stump. Shoot for an area about six to eight feet away from the stump.Click to see full answer. Hereof, what happens to tree roots after stump grinding?While stump grinding takes care of the visible remains of the tree, the old tree’s roots are still spread out underground, sometimes 4, 8 or 12 feet beyond where the stump stood. After grinding, these roots will naturally decay, but it’s a lengthy process. It can take 10-plus years for the roots to fully break down.Also, how long after stump grinding can you plant? If there is still a stump in your yard, you can encourage it to decompose. Drill holes into it and fill them with a mixture of one part compost, one part top soil and one part high-nitrogen fertilizer, but it could take one to three years for the stump and roots to fully decompose. Keeping this in consideration, can you plant a tree where one died? Planting where other plants died is possible but only if you take appropriate actions, especially when disease issues are involved — which may result in replant disease.Can I leave tree roots in the ground?Trees that do not produce root sprouts are unlikely to regrow once the tree is down and the stump ground up into chips. Large roots may remain in the ground and slowly decompose.