{"id":91881,"date":"2021-11-09T07:00:28","date_gmt":"2021-11-09T12:00:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/?p=91881"},"modified":"2021-11-05T08:44:36","modified_gmt":"2021-11-05T12:44:36","slug":"tips-for-installing-winter-tree-guards","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/tips-for-installing-winter-tree-guards\/","title":{"rendered":"Tips For Installing Winter Tree Guards"},"content":{"rendered":"

Winter is rapidly approaching on my northern Wisconsin farm, which means it\u2019s time to start prepping my young fruit trees for the coldest months of the year. While they\u2019re busy dropping their leaves and heading into winter slumber, I\u2019m busy strengthening their protective perimeter deer fence<\/a> and\u2014just as importantly\u2014wrapping their delicate trunks with tree guards.<\/p>\n

Installing tree guards is an important step to protect the trunks of your trees from winter girdling<\/a> by hungry critters\u2014rabbits, mice, voles, etc. It\u2019s disappointing to see a beautiful tree you\u2019ve carefully tended emerge from winter with potentially fatal bark damage. To avoid this upsetting possibility, installing tree guards on young fruit trees is a high priority on my annual winter prep checklist.<\/p>\n

Tree guards come in a wide variety of styles and materials, and some are more suitable for specific needs than others. But for the purpose of protecting in winter (when the trees are dormant and not adding girth to their trunks), I\u2019ve found that a combination of corrugated plastic guards and versatile cloth wraps serve my needs perfectly.<\/p>\n

\n

Read more: Are you ready for winter? This cold-weather checklist will help you prepare!<\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

\n

Corrugated Plastic<\/h2>\n

Corrugated plastic guards are effective for guarding branchless portions of the lower trunk. They are tough and durable\u2014no critter is going to chew through the plastic, at least not easily!<\/p>\n

They\u2019re also fast and simple to install. This is useful if you\u2019re wrapping dozens of trees on the last nice day before a giant snowstorm. Been there, done that.<\/p>\n

Cloth Wraps<\/h2>\n

Cloth wraps might not present quite as formidable a barrier against hungry critters. But they\u2019re useful for wrapping portions of the trunk from which branches are growing.<\/p>\n

The cloth wraps I use come on rolls and measure about 3 inches in width. Io installing them requires wrapping the cloth in overlapping spirals up and around the trunk. This means you can leave small gaps in the wrap coverage to let branches through, allowing you to protect most of the trunk while still accommodating branches.<\/p>\n

For young trees with branches very low to the ground, this is a helpful alternative to corrugated plastic guards.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s also possible to wrap curving branches with cloth wraps. Ever since one of my young apple trees suffered sunscald on the south sides of its branches one winter, I\u2019ve taken to wrapping the lower portions of its main branches with white cloth.<\/p>\n

I do this in order to reflect sunlight and protect the delicate bark. So far, I\u2019ve been happy with the results\u2014no more sunscald!<\/p>\n

\n

Read more: Is it too early to start prepping for winter? No\u2014and here’s why.<\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

\n

Security Concerns<\/h2>\n

But whether you use corrugated plastic or cloth guards on your tree trunks, you\u2019ll need some way to secure them in place. For this purpose, I\u2019ve taken to using black electrical tape. It seems to hold its stickiness well over the course of winter.<\/p>\n

Everyday packaging tape, I\u2019ve discovered, is more likely to let loose when faced with winter weather.<\/p>\n

Even short strips of black electrical tape tend to stay in place when adhered to plastic. To be on the safe side, though, I wrap long strips all the way around the tree guards so the tape can seal back over itself. This forms a complete loop that rarely gives way.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m happy to say my fruit trees are already wrapped for the coming winter. I\u2019m confident my efforts will protect them from hungry critters. Now I\u2019m just counting down the days until spring blossoms emerge!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Installing tree guards is an important step to protect the trunks of your trees from winter girdling by hungry critters. Here are tips to get you started.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":211,"featured_media":91886,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[426,10458],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-91881","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-equipment","category-farm-garden"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nTips For Installing Winter Tree Guards - Hobby Farms<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Installing tree guards is an important step to protect the trunks of your trees from winter girdling by hungry critters. 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