What's the best tree tube?

[bornagain62511]

Just looking for everyone's opinion on what is the best made tree tube on the market? please share your experience and advice. thanks!

 

[Lee Haakenson]

Any one that comes as a solid tube, with vents in the top half and a stake. 5' tall and edges rolled/flared at top so the emerging tree doesnt rub.

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[scott44]

I use 5' Miracle tubes and PVC conduit for stakes.
http://www.treepro.com/miracle-tube-tree-shelters/

 

[yoderjac]

Just looking for everyone's opinion on what is the best made tree tube on the market? please share your experience and advice. thanks!

The key is diameter and proper venting throughout the tube. Solid tubes can promote mold and fungus in some situations. If they are not tight to the ground, you can get just the opposite effect where the chimney effect dries out your seedling. In some cases, tubes will promote growth with a greenhouse effect. In other cases, they can do more harm than good. Some trees do better in tubes than others. It doesn't matter if you buy them vented or vent them yourself, but they need proper venting.

For me, the positives and negatives pretty much balance except for one factor, relatively inexpensive protection. They are the least costly option to protect the central leader from browsing. I uses them for chestnuts but use cages for apples.

I've used Protex solid tubes that I vented myself. They are some of the least expensive when you find them on sale. They come as flat sheets that wrap around . I did not like the way the connected with flaps so I punched holes and used cable ties. This wrapping design allows you to fairly easily remove the tubes by clipping the cable ties to clean out any debris and then reinstall them. I used a drill press to drill holes through the sheets for venting and closing them with cable ties.

The Plantra tubes come properly vented and are quick to install, but they slide over the top of the seedling. This is fine if the tree is a whip, but once branching starts, you can't easily remove and reinstall them.

I've also used Bluex years ago. They were similar to the Protex in how I dealt with them as they came in sheets and are meant to wrap around.

Different tubes have different characteristics as those above demonstrate. I don't thenk there is a best tube. One more key is staking. Trees need wind to stress them when they are young or they can get brittle and snap in high wind when they get older. Using PVC like Scott indicates allows for some flex. I would not use them with rigid stakes that don't flex.

Thanks,

jack

 

[ksgobbler]

I use Protex with fiberglass stakes. Found a new way to connect the flaps that makes diameter slightly smaller but eliminates the need for cable ties. Wife actually started doing it on the tubed trees in the yard. One a fiberglass stake attaching it to the stake with cable ties or baling wire I can just slide it up slightly to clean leaves then drop it back down. So far so good.

 

[Lee Haakenson]

Just looking for everyone's opinion on what is the best made tree tube on the market? please share your experience and advice. thanks!

The key is diameter and proper venting throughout the tube. Solid tubes can promote mold and fungus in some situations. If they are not tight to the ground, you can get just the opposite effect where the chimney effect dries out your seedling. In some cases, tubes will promote growth with a greenhouse effect. In other cases, they can do more harm than good. Some trees do better in tubes than others. It doesn't matter if you buy them vented or vent them yourself, but they need proper venting.

For me, the positives and negatives pretty much balance except for one factor, relatively inexpensive protection. They are the least costly option to protect the central leader from browsing. I uses them for chestnuts but use cages for apples.

I've used Protex solid tubes that I vented myself. They are some of the least expensive when you find them on sale. They come as flat sheets that wrap around . I did not like the way the connected with flaps so I punched holes and used cable ties. This wrapping design allows you to fairly easily remove the tubes by clipping the cable ties to clean out any debris and then reinstall them. I used a drill press to drill holes through the sheets for venting and closing them with cable ties.

The Plantra tubes come properly vented and are quick to install, but they slide over the top of the seedling. This is fine if the tree is a whip, but once branching starts, you can't easily remove and reinstall them.

I've also used Bluex years ago. They were similar to the Protex in how I dealt with them as they came in sheets and are meant to wrap around.

Different tubes have different characteristics as those above demonstrate. I don't thenk there is a best tube. One more key is staking. Trees need wind to stress them when they are young or they can get brittle and snap in high wind when they get older. Using PVC like Scott indicates allows for some flex. I would not use them with rigid stakes that don't flex.

Thanks,

jack

X2 on pvc conduit. Buy a 10' and cut in half. I believe the gray is UV resistant

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[Jordan Selsor]

Short ones! 4ft max if for chestnuts!
Chestnuts get to spindley in 5ft tubes in my opinion!

 

[Tap]

No tube.
I can't tell you how many tree failures I've had from tubing trees. Tubes are wonderful homes for tree girding rodents. I've had a bunch of trees in tubes die and when I remove the tube of the dead tree, there's a nice little mouse nest that surrounds the trunk with all the bark chewed off.
Cages man, cages.

 

[Northbound]

My favorite are the free and cheep ones on craigslist. Along with 1/2" sched20 pvc (the most flimsy pvc made) allows them to sway in wind a little to make tree not so weak

My second favorite are the 5 foot tubes from our county sale. White plastic with vent holes.

 

[Tap]

And I can tell you the worst tubes...Mesh ones.
How are they working for you, Catscratch?

 

[yoderjac]

And I can tell you the worst tubes...Mesh ones.
How are they working for you, Catscratch?

I've had some success with the mesh tubes. As Jordon Selsor points out, there can be issues with tall tubes and chestnuts, but I now use 5' tubes on many. Because of that concern, one of the things I tried was using an 18" tube on chestnuts and sliding a mesh tube over it. I'm not sure if we are talking about the same thing. Forestry supply calls these Rigid Tree Protectors: https://www.forestry-suppliers.com/product_pages/products.php?mi=16201&itemnum=17045&redir=Y They don't act like tubes at all for me. My chestnut lateral branches grow through them and are nipped of, but the central leaders are generally not touched so they don't end up being bushes that will likely never produce nuts. The problem I found with them is that until the central leader gets out of the top, it will sometime want to grow through the mesh and get nipped off. I need to keep an eye on them as the trees grow to make sure this doesn't happen. Some lateral branches will get large enough to be constricted by the mesh. I just cut the mesh to make room. One technique I tried was taking one of the small 18" protex sheets and putting it inside the mesh and sliding it so the top of the central leader is in the protex. This keeps it from growing out of the mesh and I just slide the protex up as the seedling grows. These mesh protectors won't stop a deer that really wants the tree, but if you have plenty of browse like I do, it is enough to make it more convenient for the deer to eat something else. They don't act like tree tubes and don't have any of the same positive or negative impacts on seedlings.

How about you Catscratch?

Thanks,

jack

 

[rocksnstumps]

Short ones! 4ft max if for chestnuts!
Chestnuts get to spindley in 5ft tubes in my opinion!

Everything gets spindley in 5 fters but 4 ft just do not offer enough protection from browsing in my experience. The bigger the dia tube the better as mice seem to prefer the smaller dia ones to try and nest. I go back and pull tubes off at end of 1st growing season and get rid of dead leaves, trim the stem of lower branches still in tube and wrap with window screen and pop tube back on. Screen is needed for both tubes and cages, no exceptions. I dont use tubes as much now that I plant smaller quantites of stuff but Miracle 5 ft tube as noted above work ok. I also restake stuff after things are 8ft+ to allow more flexing and build up the stem.
Years ago I got a pile of them thru some promo with the nwtf. Have to check around for best deals every year tho. When doing lots of hardwood bareroots and using tubes is a good combo in my opinion. Ok so you maybe have a doz of something, just do cages right away.

 

[yoderjac]

Everything gets spindley in 5 fters but 4 ft just do not offer enough protection from browsing in my experience. The bigger the dia tube the better as mice seem to prefer the smaller dia ones to try and nest. I go back and pull tubes off at end of 1st growing season and get rid of dead leaves, trim the stem of lower branches still in tube and wrap with window screen and pop tube back on. Screen is needed for both tubes and cages, no exceptions. I dont use tubes as much now that I plant smaller quantites of stuff but Miracle 5 ft tube as noted above work ok. I also restake stuff after things are 8ft+ to allow more flexing and build up the stem.
Years ago I got a pile of them thru some promo with the nwtf. Have to check around for best deals every year tho. When doing lots of hardwood bareroots and using tubes is a good combo in my opinion. Ok so you maybe have a doz of something, just do cages right away.

There is another factor here and that is what was the state of the Chestnut before tubing. I found that starting chestnuts under lights in the winter can contribute to them being spindly. More lumens and closer proximity can help, but the nuts are so large and full of energy that they grow fast and reach for the sun. When they are still green, they can grow so fast they can't support themselves and need support so they don't flop over before they harden. Using a fan for a bit each day can help stress them when in 18s. Using wire safety flags as stakes after they go outside in larger containers can help. These keep them vertical but flex a lot in the wind. If everything goes right you can get a tree that is already out of a 6' tube and does not need support at the end of the first growing season. This tread shows the progress of tree that was tubed with a 5' tube: http://www.habitat-talk.com/index.p...h-rootmakers-transfered-from-qdma-forum.5556/. I don't think I took a picture this year. I'll try to get one after leaf-out next spring.

Thanks,

jack

 

[Tap]

I've had some success with the mesh tubes. As Jordon Selsor points out, there can be issues with tall tubes and chestnuts, but I now use 5' tubes on many. Because of that concern, one of the things I tried was using an 18" tube on chestnuts and sliding a mesh tube over it. I'm not sure if we are talking about the same thing. Forestry supply calls these Rigid Tree Protectors: https://www.forestry-suppliers.com/product_pages/products.php?mi=16201&itemnum=17045&redir=Y They don't act like tubes at all for me. My chestnut lateral branches grow through them and are nipped of, but the central leaders are generally not touched so they don't end up being bushes that will likely never produce nuts. The problem I found with them is that until the central leader gets out of the top, it will sometime want to grow through the mesh and get nipped off. I need to keep an eye on them as the trees grow to make sure this doesn't happen. Some lateral branches will get large enough to be constricted by the mesh. I just cut the mesh to make room. One technique I tried was taking one of the small 18" protex sheets and putting it inside the mesh and sliding it so the top of the central leader is in the protex. This keeps it from growing out of the mesh and I just slide the protex up as the seedling grows. These mesh protectors won't stop a deer that really wants the tree, but if you have plenty of browse like I do, it is enough to make it more convenient for the deer to eat something else. They don't act like tree tubes and don't have any of the same positive or negative impacts on seedlings.

How about you Catscratch?

Thanks,

jack

Yep, those are the ones I was talking about. I had a few dozen given to me by a local friend from that old forum. He swore that they were the absolute worst. He said his deer went out of the way to smash the crap out of them. I thankfully accepted the tubes and used quite a few right off the bat. Doug wasn't wrong. My deer destroy those things and it isn't just to get to the tree. They just seem to like f-ing them up. I've watched, with my own 2 eyes, a button buck smashing the crap out of one. He looked like a destructive juvenile delinquent. A punk. He was having the time of his life smashing someone else's stuff. Pretty much every single mesh tube I used got smashed.
I offered them for free on one of these forums and Catscratch accepted the offer. Last I heard, if I'm remembering correctly, he didn't like them either.
Another suck-ass thing about mesh is trying to put them over an existing tree. Every single branch tip pokes thru the mesh and gets broken. Man, I hate those things.

 

[Catscratch]

Lol! I'm using them, but that's only because I'm not a quitter!

I think I did something to piss Tap off, so he gave me a bunch of them to exact revenge... Not only did he send me something created by the Devil, but he packed them in a way that was almost impossible to undo.

I currently have a couple in use by themselves. But for the most part I'm using them to protect trees that are in tubes that are too short.

I'm slowly converting all my planted trees to cages. That is my favorite but it's not as quick and easy (or cheap) as throwing a tube on a freshly planted tree.

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[yoderjac]

Yep, those are the ones I was talking about. I had a few dozen given to me by a local friend from that old forum. He swore that they were the absolute worst. He said his deer went out of the way to smash the crap out of them. I thankfully accepted the tubes and used quite a few right off the bat. Doug wasn't wrong. My deer destroy those things and it isn't just to get to the tree. They just seem to like f-ing them up. I've watched, with my own 2 eyes, a button buck smashing the crap out of one. He looked like a destructive juvenile delinquent. A punk. He was having the time of his life smashing someone else's stuff. Pretty much every single mesh tube I used got smashed.
I offered them for free on one of these forums and Catscratch accepted the offer. Last I heard, if I'm remembering correctly, he didn't like them either.
Another suck-ass thing about mesh is trying to put them over an existing tree. Every single branch tip pokes thru the mesh and gets broken. Man, I hate those things.

Tap,

That is another good point. Deer in different areas seem to react quite differently to tubes. There may be a north/south difference. In general, we have mild winters (although we just got 6"+ of snow today). Woody browse is plentiful and deer often don't use it much. Deer are browsers, and they just seem to nip woody browse incidentally as they walk by. My chestnuts are planted generally in open areas with a clover base. I initially did not even think I would need tubes since we have lots of native browse that is not heavily browsed. What I found is that deer could come out to eat the clover and just nip the chestnuts as they walk by. I planted a few as an experiment in planted pines and deer didn't touch them. So, for me, deer don't seek out common hardwood browse. They do seek out more attractive browse sometimes like apples so I cage those. Deer seem to ignore all my tree tubes regardless of type. I can see how if you are in an area where deer are attracted to the chestnut or whatever tree, where the mesh tubes would be much less protective. But for me, simply the presence of a mesh tube makes it less convenient for a deer to nip off the central leader as they walk by.

I do find it very interesting how deer react differently in different locations.

Thanks,

jack

 

[Tap]

Ttt

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Hey, those tubes look familiar! So, am I mistaken when I thought you didn't like them?

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[Catscratch]

Hey, those tubes look familiar! So, am I mistaken when I thought you didn't like them?

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You are not mistaken. But not liking something isn't necessarily a reason to not use it... if the alternative is to leave them completely unprotected.

 

[yoderjac]

You are not mistaken. But not liking something isn't necessarily a reason to not use it... if the alternative is to leave them completely unprotected.

Yes, they are not my 1st choice either but much better than nothing.

 

[Jordan Selsor]

Everything gets spindley in 5 fters but 4 ft just do not offer enough protection from browsing in my experience. The bigger the dia tube the better as mice seem to prefer the smaller dia ones to try and nest. I go back and pull tubes off at end of 1st growing season and get rid of dead leaves, trim the stem of lower branches still in tube and wrap with window screen and pop tube back on. Screen is needed for both tubes and cages, no exceptions. I dont use tubes as much now that I plant smaller quantites of stuff but Miracle 5 ft tube as noted above work ok. I also restake stuff after things are 8ft+ to allow more flexing and build up the stem.
Years ago I got a pile of them thru some promo with the nwtf. Have to check around for best deals every year tho. When doing lots of hardwood bareroots and using tubes is a good combo in my opinion. Ok so you maybe have a doz of something, just do cages right away.

Once they grow out of the 3 or 4ft tube I wrap some geo grid fencing around it to extend another 2ft protection. I make it cone shaped so it can flush out an blow around in the wind. Been working more better than 5ft tubes