How do I stop this

[Nova]

A lot of my younger apple trees are growing shoot out of the base even though I have tree guards on them. Is there any way to stop this from happening? I like to keep the weeds/grass from growing around the base with gly, but I don't want to hit the leaves of the apple tree shoots.

 

[Turkey Creek]

You need to get some deer! LOL Around here the deer would have those eaten off in the first night. You might look into a product called "Sucker Stopper" they recommend it alot for ornamental trees around here, not sure what the label says about fruit trees.

 

[Nova]

Thanks. I found something close at Fleet Farm called sucker punch. It's designed for fruit trees. I'll run there after work and get some. Appreciate the help!

 

[Mortenson]

Unrelated to your problem but I'll only mention it because I've read it a lot of times on the forums, I've heard mice will nest inside those tubes and possibly girdle the tree.

 

[Bowsnbucks]

Yep. ^^^^^ Had it happen at camp on previous - no longer alive - trees some years back. Mice set up hotels inside them and girdled the trees to death.

 

[Tree Spud]

Yep. ^^^^^ Had it happen at camp on previous - no longer alive - trees some years back. Mice set up hotels inside them and girdled the trees to death.

Mice will actually chew through the corrugated pipe. The black pipe will maintain warmth in the winter. I use 1/4" galvanized mesh.

The suckers are a pain, I try to prune them off.

 

[yoderjac]

I wonder if the black drainage tubes are not the problem themselves. They are not designed for trees. They pick up a lot of heat. My guess is that they are stressing the tree and it is responding by putting up new shoots to try to survive.

My suggestion:

Cage if you need protection from deer don't use those tubes. If rodents are an issues use hardware cloth or window screen around the lower portion of the tree. I used actual 18" tree tubes designed for trees to protect from rodents inside the cage. My seedlings were over 5' tall when planted. My issue was different. The tubes actually created a better environment sooner in the spring. So, my trees would sprout stems from the trunk inside the tube. They would then clutter the tube creating bad conditions for the trunk. I ended up removing all of the tubes. If I do see rodent issues, I'll add the hardware cloth or window screen.

Thanks,

Jack

 

[Appleman]

Removing the black corrugated tile is a good idea and replacing it with aluminum screening 26 inches high will provide the best protection. I used corrugated tile many years ago and believe it does encourage suckering. I do think though suckering is more rootstock dependent and planting a tree with the graft union too far above the soil line (greater than an inch) can also add to the problem. Suckering in my orchards are common on most east mailing rootstocks, like M7. Conversely almost non-existent on Bud series. I stopped using tree tubes years ago for fruit trees for a number of reasons and did notice a green house affect where a noticeable number of suckers were forming inside the tubes.

 

[Nova]

I just put the black tube on last fall because the deer decided this was a good tree to remove their velvet on. This tree and almost all my other fruit trees are all suckering. I have white tree guards(tubes, but not real tree tubes) on some, nothing on others. I just use the white tree guards to protect from rodents(mice, voles and rabbits) and they have worked fantastic for 6-7 years. I also have cages on most of my trees until they get as large as this one. I don't care if the deer browse the tree(to a point), but I don't want them rubbing on them.

I removed the black tube last night and trimmed all the suckers on this tree. Fleet farm did not have the "sucker punch" in stock last night, but I will find some and give that a try.

 

[TenPoint]

36" or 48" aluminum window screen folded around the tree and stapled is the best option of protection from mice, borers, etc., imo. Paint the trunk white to protect from SW injury as well as another deterrent to borers.