Why Fence Around Trees?

A buck shows interest in a doe at the start of the fall season. The fall mating season usually begins during the third week of September until late November, depending on your location. In some countries, the rutting season occurs from mid-October to the early week of December. 

Generally, bucks have their style when running after a female deer. They rub their antlers against the trees, which can cause harm to the young trees. During the rut season, they become wild to catch the fancy of their love interest. 

Trees have a significant role in the ecosystem that needs care and protection from rutting deer. Imagine the damage that bucks can do to trees if you raise a large herd of deer! One of the ways to protect the trees is to surround them with a fence. 

What Does Rut Mean?

Before we go deeper into the importance of fencing around trees, let’s discuss the science of rutting deer, especially if you have not encountered a deer ever since in your life. A rut came from the Latin word rugire or roar in English. It refers to the mating season of some mammals, including deer. 

During this season, the male deer experiences high testosterone levels, leading to increased sexual aggression. Bucks undergo a lot of physiological changes to make them look attractive to does. They use their olfactory sense to lure does to have sex with them by using their gland secretions or soaking in their urine. 

Bucks rub their antlers on the branches and underside of trees or bathe in dust to make them look attractive to their object of interest. They bang their antlers so loud to create noise, which may look natural on them, but not for the trees. 

Why Trees Need Protection

There are valid reasons why trees should have a fence around them. Trees help improve the quality of air and protect the earth from flooding. These are some of the uses of trees in the environment that should get protection from large animals, especially from rutting deer. 

Trees suffer a lot from rutting buck. The damage begins about a foot from the soil up to five feet deep. Rubbing and girdling the tree bark may remove the layers around the circumference that lead to the tree’s death. 

Patches on the bark may cause stress to the tree. The tree can heal but grows weaker, and the damaged part may die. Deer also eat the lower parts of the tree when it gets hungry during winter. Deer keep returning to your yard if you do not surround the tree with a fence. 

Remember that the outer bark offers protection from the elements, moisture, and inundation and keeps it hydrated during drought. The tree’s inner bark protects from burrowing insects, cold weather, diseases, and pest infestations. A thin layer underneath the inner layer contains nutrients supplied throughout the tree. 

The xylem or inner cambium layer transports the water and nutrients from the roots; the phloem or outer cambium layer transports the food from the leaves to the trees through photosynthesis. The bark develops from excess phloem while the wood develops from the old xylem tissue.  

Here are many ways of protecting trees. 

Should You Set Up Fence Around Young Trees?

Surrounding the young trees with plastic tree guards is an effective method of protecting them. However, the use of plastic tree guards is discouraged by environmentalists because they are often left clinging to the trees until they reach maturity. 

Bamboo and wood stakes are good alternatives as they are non-toxic but are not long-lasting. Some landowners stack old tires around the tree by poking a three-star steel post into the ground. 

Another suggestion is to surround the young tree with old galvanized iron and keep it in place with steel or wood posts. You may also encompass the tree with an old drum putting it in place with a steel post triangle. Attach a wire mesh above the drum for added protection while the tree grows.  

Should You Set Up Fence Around Mature Trees?

Mature trees need added protection even if it has grown taller and broader. One of the best methods to restrict access to the surrounding area for animal grazing and shading is to fasten a small-netted wire around the tree trunk. 

The net wire should be smaller than a chicken wire to avoid snaring the hooves. Ensure to protect the girding or ring barking when attaching the net; it should be taller for the animals to reach. 

Prioritize farm animals’ safety while considering the growing years of trees when attaching the net wire. Keep in mind that the tree will expand, so leave several inches from the tree for future expansion. Allowing the animals to graze around the trees may cause premature death as they also damage the tree roots.

Where to Plant Trees

Although trees are helpful in agricultural lands, planting them in areas where animals live can cause harm to your livestock. Stockyards or exercise yards contain heavy animals that might get entangled with wire netting and trees, causing injury. 

Trees should be outside the premises of your stockyard. Plant them near the fence to give shade and shelter during warm days. You may also plant the trees near the corner of your stockyard and surround them with wood planks. 

Fencing for Damage Prevention 

Farm owners can avoid damaging trees caused by rutting deer and browsing by enclosing the yard with fences. The fencing materials are a bit expensive if the purpose is to discourage deer from entering the yard. 

However, many fence types and methods for adequately installing, designing, and maintaining fences can guard your trees against damage. Consider the configurations and sizes of the fences suitable for tree fencing. Short fences might be less costly, but they are ineffective against deer pressure. Here is a list of fence types to protect deer entry. 

• Double fences
• Electric tape fences
• 8by10-inch plastic mesh fences
• 8by10-inch metal woven/net fences
• 8by10-inch vertical electric/high tensile fences
• Buried electronic fence 
• High tensile/angled electric fences
• Peanut butter fences

How to Set up & Install Fence Around Tree

Young trees and shrubs can get ample protection from deer antler damage by surrounding them in cages. The materials for the cage could be plastic or metal, while the post can be PVC, metal, or wood. Heavy-duty materials cost more but are cheaper in the long run as it requires less care. 

If you are a busy person and lack time to maintain a cage, you need more robust materials, which are pricey. If you do the installation, you need wire cutters, string, zip ties, and a hammer or mallet. The cages may come in various sizes and shapes. 

Usually, a tree cage has about 12 inches to 24 inches across. Surround the tree with five feet diameter of four T posts and five-foot-tall fencing. Secure the fence with zip ties. 

Wire fencing coated with galvanized or vinyl can last longer. They come in 14 gauge mesh with 2by2 openings or 2by4 openings. The 2by4 openings are ideal for driving away beavers and deer. The best color for the vinyl-coated wire is black, as it blends in the environment instead of green.