It's best not to re-use tree tubes... but if you're determined to re-use them here are two ways to do it

This post is long overdue.  The single biggest mistake tree planters make when using tree tubes is that they remove them too soon.  As we have discussed, tree tubes are meant to fill three roles throughout the course of their life:  Establishment, support and bark protection.

In the establishment phase (1 to 3 years) the tree tubes protect seedlings from animals, reduce moisture stress (to enhance survival and growth) and shield seedlings from herbicide & mowers, to get seedlings off to a successful start.

At the point in time that the trees emerge from the tree tubes they will have a thinner stem relative to their height than trees planted without tree tubes (the difference being, of course, that trees planted without tree tubes often NEVER reach that height).  Tree tubes are DESIGNED to stay in place to support the trunk of the tree after it emerges from the tube, until the trunk thickens up.

Even when the trees are self-supporting they are still at risk for bark damage from deer (buck rub) and rodents.  Tree tubes are meant to be left in place for continued bark protection until the trees reach 3 inches in diameter at the base, at which time the tubes should be removed and disposed of.

HOWEVER.  Tree tubes are a significant investment for the hobbyist tree planter, and the idea of re-using tree tubes is very tempting... or even in some cases necessary.  Keep in mind that every time you remove a tree tube before it has completed its full job of getting the tree to 3 inch basal diameter you are taking the risk that something will happen - wind storm that breaks the stem, buck rub, gnawing rodents, mower damage - that will either set the tree back or even kill it.

The sooner after emergence you remove the tree tube the greatest the risk to the tree.  Tree planters have been successful using two different methods of re-using tree tubes. 

Good (highest risk but also highest number of uses for each tree tube):  Remove the tree tube shortly after the tree emerges, but tie the tree to the stake you were using to support the tree tube.  Preferably this would be a flexible stake like pvc.  I´m not a huge fan of this practice – I don´t like staking trees and of course it exposes the tree to rodent and deer damage.  But I have many customers doing this successfully and it does mean you can use the tubes two or three times.

 Better (less risk and affords opportunity to re-use the tree tube once):  After the tree emerges wait at least one full growing season and then remove the tube.  Especially when using pvc stakes the tree will gain a lot of caliper in that first growing season after emerging from the tube, and should be self supporting at that point.  The advantage is the ability to reuse the tube (and probably the stake if the tree can stand alone); the disadvantage again is exposing the bark to rodents and deer damage.

Best of all, of course is to keep the tree tubes on until the trees reach 3 inches in basal diameter.  At that stage you can remove the tree tube knowing it has completed the three functions for which it was designed, and safe in the knowledge that the tree is successfully established.

But if budgetary restrictions mean you have to re-use tree tubes in order to meet your planting goals, these guidelines will help you weight the risks of the various methods and will give you the best chance for success.

4ft Tree Tubes - Still the "workhorse" tree tube height

Recent years has seen a skewing of tree tube sales from 3ft and 4ft heights to 5ft and even 6ft heights.  This is indicative of two factors:

1) The deer population continues to grow virtually unchecked, putting more and higher browse pressure on tree seedlings.

2) Tree tubes are increasingly being used by sportsmen to improve wildlife habitat which means

• They really care about the success of each individual tree, and the speed with which it will begin producing mast
• They are planting tree species that are especially attractive to deer like fruit and nut trees
• They are planting in places with high concentrations of (hopefully!) very large deer

In light of these trends it's not surprising to see an up-tick in the market share of 5ft tree tubes.  However, it's important to note that 4ft tree tubes still represent by far the lion's share of the tree tube market.  The 4ft tree tube is still the workhorse product that's getting it done, especially on large scale projects.

The reason is simple:  In the majority of cases 4ft tubes provide all of the deer browse protection needed for success.  Wilson Forestry Supply's web site puts it in perspective well:

• 4ft Tubex Combitube Plus Tree Tubes provide enough protection to grow trees past the deer browse line about 75% of the time.  Deer can browse trees emerging from 4ft tree tubes.  In most cases the tree will have enough stored energy to send a rapid growth shoot past the deer browse line.  However, in some areas deer will repeatedly browse trees as they emerge from 4ft tree tubes, not allowing them to grow taller.  In these cases the protection of the 4ft tube can be supplemented either with deer repellent or a 2ft Tubextender kit (sold separately).
• 5ft Tubex Combitube Plus Tree Tubes provide enough protection from deer approximately 90% of the time.  In areas with extremely high deer densities, the deer can browse trees as they emerge from 5ft tree tubes.  Cases of deer browsing trees emerging from 5ft tree tubes are most common with fruit trees such as apples, crabapples, pear, etc.
• 6ft Tubex Combitube Plus Tree Tubes provide enough protection from deer 99.87% of the time (OK, we made that up, but 6ft tubes are as close to complete deer protection as you can get).

 All tree planters have a limited, finite budget.  All tree planters want to accomplish as much as possible within that budget.  Given that, and in the face of deer browse pressure, there are two entirely reasonable approaches, both of which end with success:

1) Use 4ft Tree Tubes to optimize the number of seedlings you can plant and protect within your budget.  Then, if the trees get browsed heavily upon emergence from the tubes, supplement the browse protection with either a deer repellent or a 2ft Tree Tube Extender.  This is a way to spread out the cost over a span of a few years.

2) Use 5ft Tree Tubes and protect a smaller number of seedlings within your budget, but know with (almost) certainty that you will not have to supplement that level of deer browse protection.

Actually, there's a third way - one which probably makes the most sense of all:  Strategic deployment of 5ft or 6ft tubes.  If you are planting a field of trees, the deer do not browse them equally.  They hit certain species (fruit trees in particular, such as crab apples) harder than others.  They browse more heavily along creeks and alongside woods and cover.  A very effective strategy is to use 5ft or 6ft tree tubes on trees that are the most "at risk" based on species or location, and 4ft tubes on the rest.

This argues heavily in favor of choosing a tree tube supplier that offers a range of sizes and lets you order any quantity of mixed sizes, so that you can customize your planting to your exact needs, budget and goals.

When to remove tree tubes

Probably the biggest area of confusion about using tree tubes is when to remove them.  The most frequent mistake tree planters make when using tree tubes is removing them too soon, before they have completed their task of successfully establishing a tree.

There has been a lot of discussion about this issue recently on sportsman's online forums.  A common complaint seems to be that the tree planter, eager to remove (and perhaps reuse) the tree tubes, removes them as soon as the trees emerge from the tubes - only to find that the trees are not fully self-supporting.  They "flop over."

Tree tubes designed to fulfill three functions at different stages of a seedling's development.

1) Establishment - tree tubes protect newly planted seedlings from deer, rabbit and rodent damage, reduce moisture stress to dramatically increase survival rates and accelerate growth, and shield them from herbicide spray and/or mowers to make weed control fast and easy (or even, in many cases, possible).

2) Support - the introduction of vented tree tubes and the adoption of flexible tree tube stakes such as pvc conduit has resulted in a dramatic increase in the stem diameter of trees when the emerge from tree tubes.  However, since we're still talking about growing a tree up through an enclosed space to rapidly pierce the browse line, trees that have recently emerged from tree tubes are quite thin-stemmed relative to their height.

That's why tree tubes - at least good tree tubes - are designed to last several years.  When the tree emerges the tree tubes assumes a new role, that of trunk support.  Tree tubes are meant to be left in place to support the tree while the newly emerged canopy sways in the wind and the trunk rapidly gains caliper.

3) Trunk/Bark Protection - A year or two after emerging from the tree tube the tree will be completely self supporting.  Even then the tree tube still has a role to play in the successful long term establishment of the tree.  Bucks love to scrape and rub their antlers against springy saplings.  Rodent still gnaw on the tender bark of young trees.  Treeshelters protect the trunk of the newly established tree from these dangers.

To gain the full spectrum of benefits tree tubes can provide, they should be left on young trees until they reach about 3 inches in diameter at the base, at which point the tree tubes should be removed and properly disposed of or recycled.

Does that mean you can't reuse tree tubes?  Not at all.  Given the cost of tree tubes - and tree planting in general - and the fact that most folks are trying to achieve as much as they can within very limited planting budgets, it is natural to want to establish more than one tree with each tree tube.

In the next post we will cover three methods for reusing tree tubes, and weigh the risk and benefits of each.