Someone made a comment on another thread about a $5 tree and a $50 dollar hole.....and got me to thinking so I thought I would put some numbers to my little crab apple planting. I thought a pic would help.
Tree price included shipping so you can see the actual "investment" if you will. This was a bare root tree and many 3 gallon container type trees will cost in the ballpark of $30 or even more sometimes.
The exterior cage is used to keep the deer and larger critters from destroying the tree. You can use old woven wire fence, concrete wire or whatever is cheap and easy that will retain it's shape. I use 5 feet tall because this prevents the deer from being able to easily reach down into it and getting to the tree. I also use roughly a 8 to 9 feet of linear length. Keep in mind the diameter you seek is a function of the linear length....the diameter is roughly 1/3 of the linear length just to keep things simple. My 8 foot length gives me a diameter of about 2 1/2 feet.
The post U used is called a "U" post and is a lightweight type post. You can use a common "T" post as well or any other post you wish to use. Just remember that wood will rot over time.
You don't have to use ground staples, I just did in this case because I was not able to immediately cover the weed barrier.
Weed barrier in my opinion is required. This is a fabric and NOT plastic. This allows the air and water to pass but not allow weeds to grow to compete with your tree. I use a 36" wide x 50 feet roll and have plenty for many trees. I simply cut a slit from the very center to an edge and install similar to an old school X-mas tree skirt. Just make sure it's at least the size of your exterior cage.
Interior cage is a requirement as well. The purpose it to prevent small rodents from chewing on the bark of the tree and killing it. It only needs to be larger than the trunk of your tree, however it needs to be tall enough to protect the trunk considering your typical snow fall level if at all possible. I use 2 or 3 feet tall x 5 feet rolls of 1/2" x 1/2" hardware cloth. Many use metal window screen as well and it works just fine.
I use bailing wire to fasten/wire the exterior cage closed if needed as well as the interior cage and to attach and hold the exterior cage to the post as well. It's cheap and it works and will last longer than something like a zip-tie.
I prefer to use gravel of some sort to cover the weed barrier. I get mine from a creek on my property....just takes some work. Some use wood mulch, but I have had issues with that so I switched to gravel and have not had an issue. The gravel allows the water to pass as well.
As you can see you will make an investment in the protection of the tree.....but do it right the first time and you only have to do it once. I don't know about a $5 tree or a $50 hole......but you should consider the cost and time of the protection materials in your projects to ensure you don't over extend yourself which tends to lead to cutting corners and frustration down the road.
