The current very high temperatures and almost tropical thunderstorms have made us think about the climate inside tree shelters.
We realise it should move further up the hierarchy of considerations when choosing which shelters to use.
Tim Oliver has a small trial plot of different tree shelters near his house in Stroud, each with a thermometer suspended at the same height inside the tree shelter. He was pleased to see that the temperature inside the NexGen shelters is up to 8 degrees cooler than in the other shelters, all of which are current market alternatives.
In a recent reaction to one of our posts, Terry Taylor, a retired landscape architect, described plants inside plastic tree shelters as ‘deep fried’. The cooler temperature inside a NexGen shelter means that, along with our mission to rid the environment of plastic pollution, we can also help to create a growing environment that is kinder and more favourable for today’s changing climate.
So much effort goes into woodland creation, from the initial discussions with landowners, through grant applications, EIA’s and securing contractors, to sourcing the correct provenance and seedling quality. So, doesn’t it seem illogical to then provide the young trees with sub-optimal growing conditions?
We plan to run similar tests this winter to see if the wool insulation protects trees from heavy frosts. Stay tuned for updates.