Over these days we were in Oakbank, West Lothian doing some tree work for the Countryside Rangers. The task involved removing tree tubes from Oak saplings and replacing them with larger tree tubes as they had out grown the tubes that were put on when the trees were planted. The reason tree tubes are used on young trees in to protect them from damage by deer and rabbits who like to eat the new growth. Installing the new tubes was a simple task, it involved pulling back the grass around the base of the tree, driving a stake into the ground next to the tree, then simply sliding the new, larger, tubes over the young tree and fixing the tube onto the stake
After we had finished re-tubing the Oak saplings (we did around 90 of them in total) we began removing tree guards from Silver Birch and Hawthorns that had outgrown the tubes, these trees have become established enough that there was no need to replace the tubes with larger ones. Although this task was slightly tedious at times it was a really important job as when the tree trunks are tight against the guards the constant moisture found between the trucks of the tree and the guard can cause the trees bark to rot which will, over time, kill the tree.
As I mentioned, at times over these two days the tasks did become a little repetitive, however we all took great pleasure in knowing the work we did was absolutely crucial in helping this young woodland establish and develop into what can become a rich woodland habitat of native trees.
