Tree Shelter

Tree shelters for starting trees from seed. I was looking over what we use here which is a cone shaped shelter that has 3 metal legs. They are quite easy to utilize and I believe they are called the Tree Sentry which has a web site:

http://treesentry.net/

I am attaching a photo I just took of the item. The cone is 18" long, the diameter at the bottom is 6.25" and at the top is is 4" and the 3 metal legs are 4" long.

The white color must be important. Because I see the orange ones all the time,



and very, very seldom does the little seedling poke its leaves out the top.

Maybe beavers and other tree predators are attracted to orange.

From what I can tell, the tree shelters are meant serve the following functions:
-protection from wildlife
-protection from strong winds and detrimental weather
-protection from competing vegetation
-maintain a stable microclimate to give the tree seedling a good start in life

The first tree shelter that I learned about was from a gmail ad, and it was the WeedGunnel company's Tree Guard.

I forgot where I learned this interesting piece of information, but it is pretty cool nonetheless:

The guano from birds has properties that protect seeds in the early stages of growth. The sticky property of guano anchors the seeds to the ground, and the film of residue on top of the seed maintains a microclimate for the seed by trapping moisture. Then, the color of the guano, usually white, reflects all colors of visible light which aids with the creation of a miniature microclimate. Also, the guano, being what it is, will provide phosphorus- one of the three macronutrients (N,P,K) for plant growth- for the plant to grow, and since guano is a full load, it also contains the bird's urine which contains nitrogen. Furthermore, the shade of the guano would shade out and kill other grasses that might compete with the seeds in the guano.

I hope this is helpful to you.

Interesting info, Dave. We do not use fertilizers, only use our compost which currently is around 50+ cu yds. Everything here tends to be organically grown. Guano is theoretically organic but we have no need for it. The information is quite good and appreciated.
/* Philip */