Designing Tree Tubes

Source: 

 Taynish National Nature Reserve, local Schools Pack (SNH)

Time

60 minutes

You will need

• 2 litre clear plastic juice or drinks bottles
• scissors
• Black paint & white paint
• thermometers 

Did you know?

Plastic tree shelters, or Tuley Tubes, were invented by Graham Tuley in the late 1970's. He was researching the growth of oak seedlings and needed a way of protecting them from climate, livestock and competing vegetation.

Before the Activity

Look at tree shelters in use at a nature reserve, local park or amenity woodland. Take photos or make sketches of the designs.

The Activity

Talk with the class about the purpose of tree shelters. A key use is to stop animals, e.g. deer, sheep, rabbits and hares, from eating the young trees. However the shelters also act as mini-greenhouses. Plants will grow better with a little warmth and shelter, however if the tree shelter is too damp with no air currents, fungus and mould will grow and rot the tree. If it is too warm, light and humid other plants, such as grass, will grow up vigorously and smother the tree.

Make tree tubes, using different designs:

1. Cut the base only off a bottle
2. As above but paint the tube black
3. Cut the base and top off a bottle to make a tube
4. As above but paint the tube white
5. As above but paint the tube black
6. As above but cut holes in the tube

Let the class place the tubes, pushed into grass or earth, in a sunny spot away from shelter for a few hours. Label the shelters A, B, C etc. Take the temperature inside the bottles, and also the ambient air temperature. Note any other observations such as whether there is condensation inside the bottles.

Each pupil can then draw a bar chart to show the results. Which bottle was the warmest and which the coldest. Discuss which design makes the best tree tube?

Suggested Follow up

Leave the tubes overnight and record the temperatures again, first thing,  in the morning.

Take in some sample tree tubes of different designs. Discuss how high the tubes need to be, whether they will need stakes. Will they need maintenance?  What would happen to the tree seedling if the tree tube falls over? What happens to the seedling when it grows into a sapling and is the size of the tree tube, will it be able to keep growing - can it burst out? Is colour important from a landscape point of view as well as for tree growth? Can the material be biodegradable?

Grow some tree seedlings, see the activity Tree Nursery in the School Grounds section

Downloads

Guide to establishing farm woodland - information on tree shelter design

Additional Information

Biodegradable tree tubes

Curriculum Links

science

Age Range

2,3,4