Maintain new trees after restocking
Find out how land managers can look after newly planted trees in areas where there’s been restocking due to pests and disease.
Why you should protect new trees
Protecting and managing new trees after restocking helps them establish and increases their chances of survival. By looking after newly planted trees you can:
- improve their growth
- reduce costs of replacing dead trees
- reduce costs of future maintenance
- prevent plastic littering from poorly maintained tree protection
It’s easier to maintain newly planted trees if you’ve planted them in the right place to start with. How a site was prepared for tree planting after felling will affect what maintenance it will need.
If you have a woodland management plan it might have details about how the site was prepared.
If you’re in an urban area, find out more about maintaining street trees in the Urban Tree Manual from Forest Research.
How to look after newly planted trees
In the first 5 years, you should:
- replace any trees that die
- reuse tree protection where possible
- replace damaged or missing tree protection
- maintain appropriate tree protection
- make sure planted trees are kept free from competing vegetation
You may also have to protect trees from damage by mammals, including voles, rabbits, hares, deer and livestock.
Control competing vegetation
Competing vegetation can greatly reduce the survival and early growth of newly planted trees. Effective vegetation management can greatly improve tree survival.
Vegetation can:
- compete for light, soil moisture and nutrients
- cause damage if it collapses in the autumn
- shelter bark-gnawing rodents such as voles
- reduce tree growth, as vegetation and tree roots will compete
You can mow or cut to prevent annual vegetation seeding. This will also prevent tall vegetation such as bracken collapsing on trees. Cutting will not reduce root competition for moisture or nutrients.
To reduce the impact of vegetation on tree survival and growth, keep:
- a minimum of 1 metre diameter around the base of each tree vegetation free
- the base of each tree vegetation free from April to July each year
You should maintain this until the trees close the canopy or dominate the surrounding vegetation. You can do this by using:
- approved herbicides
- mulch
Find out more about vegetation management from Forest Research.
Tree protection
To prevent tree damage from livestock, wildlife and other plants, you should keep the tree protection you choose to use in good condition. Tree protection needs to be effective and can include:
- shelters
- spiral guards
- fencing
- effective deer management – find out how to mitigate the impacts of deer on trees
Do not place animal feed or water in the root protection area. Livestock can damage the tree by compacting the soil or stripping the bark. Maintain livestock numbers at a level which prevents these issues.
You can put up a barrier around the root protection area to protect the tree, like a:
- temporary fence
- permanent fence
- hedge
- dead hedge made of branches and twigs
Do not allow nettles, brambles or scrub to become established along these barriers.
Find out more about using tree shelters and guards.
Strong winds can blow tree shelters over. For maximum strength, you should attach supporting stakes on the windward side of the guard. You should check planting areas after bad weather. Straighten or refit any shelters and restake as necessary.
It’s important to understand the local conditions on your site to make sure tree protection continues to be effective.
It’s very important you monitor and inspect trees regularly. You may need to adjust your tree protection if conditions change. Look for:
- plants that could compete with the young trees
- pests that may damage young trees like voles, rabbits and deer
Changes to the site such as increased deer numbers, may mean you need to use different tree protection such as taller tree shelters or perimeter fencing.
You should remove individual tree protection when it is no longer needed. Most tree shelters start to degrade after 10 years of exposure to sunlight. You could reuse some of the tree shelters if they are still in good condition. You must follow waste regulations and dispose of plastic tree shelters responsibly.
Tree pruning
You may have to prune trees over 2 metres tall so they develop a straight single stem. To help with access to the woodland, you can remove small lower branches. You can also do this to hedgerow, in-field or amenity trees to match landscape or access requirements.
Establish a root protection area
For trees outside woods, such as in fields or hedgerows, you should establish a root protection area. A root protection area is a buffer around trees that will protect roots and help trees stay healthy.
The size of the root protection area should be:
- at least 10 metres from the edge of the trunk in arable land
- at least 2 metres beyond the edge of the canopy for trees in permanent grassland
If you have veteran trees in grassland, establish a root protection area of whichever is the larger of:
- 15 times the diameter of the tree trunk at chest height
- 5 metres beyond the canopy
In the root protection area, do not:
- plough, as this can cause damage to the tree roots
- use agricultural sprays or fertilisers
- allow vehicles to drive over the area and damage the soil
- allow scrub to develop, as it will compete with the tree
Managing trees after 10 years
After 10 years you should see a woodland structure developing.
Trees in woodland
After 10 years, the tree canopies will start to close over, which will reduce competitive weed growth. Woodland ground flora will have started to develop.
As trees develop they can be damaged by mammals, for example squirrels that strip bark and kill young trees.
Find out how to manage threats to woodland from destructive animals.
You may need to continue with maintenance beyond year 10 or until the trees are established. Find out from the Royal Forestry Society how to manage an established woodland.
Trees outside of woodland
Along boundary features you should have a diverse mix of healthy young trees that are native to your local area. They should be appropriately spaced along the length of the boundary.
All trees outside woodland should have healthy crowns and good annual growth. They should show no signs of bark stripping, compaction under the canopy or any other damage.
You should be able to keep them for many years as living trees and later as dead wood.