Tree tubes
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Neahawg
5 year old buck +
So far I haven't had as much trouble with deer affecting my tubes. This however is an example of the growth you can get in one season. This apple tree went from a four foot bare root while to an 8 foot tree by July and is probably taller now.
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MoBuckChaser
Guest
I hate tubes, mice get in there and chew the trees off. Wasps get in there and the raccoons tear the tube apart, getting at the wasp nests. We put some trees in tubes, only to have the tubes pushed over and the tops ate down by the deer. Now we just cage them and screen them.
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MoBuckChaser
Guest
They are 5 gal square liquid fertilizer jugs I turned into water jugs for help keeping the trees watered when I am 400 miles away. I fill them up crack the cap a little and let them drip out slowly.
swat1018
5 year old buck +
So far I haven't had as much trouble with deer affecting my tubes. This however is an example of the growth you can get in one season. This apple tree went from a four foot bare root while to an 8 foot tree by July and is probably taller now.
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No offense, but that isn't protection where I own. That tree would get a leaf outside the tube, and it would be bitten off. You must not have a high DPSM.
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MoBuckChaser
Guest
Yep, I agree Swat. His tree would be gone in Missouri!
yoderjac
5 year old buck +
I think it really depends on the kind of tree you are planting and you specific environment. I can tell you what works in my area, but that may or may not be the same for you. I have lots of native persimmons in my area. I mostly graft established trees above easy deer reach, but I have planted persimmon seedlings when I want a tree in a certain place. I don't need to protect persimmons at all from deer. I have had rabbits kill small persimmon seedlings but that is it. The next example is chestnuts. In my area, they are not really favored or sought out for browse by deer. However, what I found was that they do need tree tubes to protect them from deer. Here is why. Deer are browsers. They don't graze for long periods. Instead, they mill around taking a bite here and there. Most of my chestnuts are planted in open areas with a clover base. Deer come to feed on the clover but as they walk by a tree they will take a bite. Often times if the seedling is small enough, that bite occurs on the central leader. So, I can end up with chestnut bushes rather than chestnut trees. I find tubes work pretty well for this application. I like to use PVC stakes with my tubes because they bend in the wind giving the trunk some flex. Finally, we come to the much more highly preferred browse trees like apple. Here, I use remesh (cement wire) cages. I like these because they are heavy duty enough to stand on their own without support and don't bend when pressured by a deer. A single t-post will hold one in place. I then use rope to create two Xs through the upper middle of the cage. These form a square in the middle of the cage that the central leader goes through. Sometime apple seedlings can grow fast and lean to the side of the cage where deer can get at them. This square in the middle limits any lean (wind or not) but still allows the tree to move normally in the wind. This is needed to stress the trunk so it does not become brittle. A 5' diameter cage works for me. The holes in remesh are large enough that a small doe or fawn can reach into the cage to browse, but I don't care about lower lateral branches. I'll prune them anyway if the deer don't.
Thanks,
Jack
Thanks,
Jack
Corey Peterson
5 year old buck +
I've noticed excessive apple scab on sucecptable varieties when using tree tubes with apple trees. Growth seemed to be about the same between trees with and without tubes.
