Question
I'm at my wit's end.  Four years ago I had a mature box elder tree in my yard cut down, and the stump was ground out about a foot below the soil.  Every summer, I get tons of suckers popping up from the surrounding roots.  A certified tree guy has been out two years in a row with his grinder to ground out more roots that surround where the original tree was.  He said he's never seen anything like it, and he's been doing this for years.

I've poured brush killer on the suckers and the roots, but more suckers just pop up elsewhere.  I've dug down to the roots that the suckers are growing from and cut the roots and removed parts of them that I can get out.  But more suckers are popping up at this moment.  I want to plant a garden in this area, but am afraid to because of this issue with the tree. This is the tree from hell.  I'm about to lose my mind!  I'm starting to think the only thing that's going to get rid of this tree is Armagedden.  PLEASE HELP ME!!

Answer
I would treat the sprouts with a herbicide called Roundup. This type herbicide will be carried  to the root system and kill the root. Brush killer type herbicide will kill the green foliage but not the root system. Use the Roundup straight from the container and wet a cloth and wipe the Roundup on to the foliage of the sprouts. I would wear plastic gloves--the herbicide will not harm you but the smell may linger on the hands.  Roundup will kill any green plant so do not get it on adjacent plants not wanting to the killed. IF this is not a problem you can spray the sprouts.