anyone have thoughts on the Plantra tree tubes? Looking at getting a few small heart nut trees from Grimo’s and noticed they sell them as add-ons to the trees. never used them or anything like them before
I’ve heard very positive (and some negative) opinions on them.
Positive- trees grow very fast to reach light. Good protection from critters
Negative - I’ve seen complaints about branching in the tube. Also ‘weak bark?’. Branching is solved by pruning the first year for a central leader.
3 Likes
I just took the tubes off for the season and they seemed to do the job well. one tree maintained a central leader and didn’t have much if any side growth. it reached the top a long time ago and I probably should have taken it off sooner, but never had the time. I placed a mesh bag over the top to prevent deer from munching the leaves. the second tree also maintained a central leader but had less sun in its location so only about 1/2 the growth. I replaced the grow tubes with rings of hardware cloth. hoping any “weak bark” gets some sun exposure and lignifies well before the end of the season.
1 Like