When I lived up north, I used hardware cloth - it comes in a roll and I just cut it and made a sleeve and crimped it together. I had a lot of voles and no more girdled trees in the spring.

hardware cloth...keeps out rabbits AND voles. Two biggest issues in my yard. One issue you do run into, once the snow piles up is that rabbits can now just browse higher up on the tree.

Has anybody tried tinfoil on young trees? Will that keep rodents at bay?

Devonhubb,

I just read here,at the link I'm providing below, that tinfoil was useless for one person trying to protect their peach trees.

I don't know which protection I'm going to choose, but I'll have to decide in the next 6 weeks or so.

Here is a link that might be useful: Gardenweb vole protection

Plastic sleeve tree guards are recommended the most. Before winter comes, I buy three hardwood stakes to help it stand. Then at the base of the tree guard, I pierce the stakes through a weed mat as to control water and sediments from entering through. Then, I can comfortably hibernate during winter season without worrying about the young trees getting iced up. Plus, no more voles pester my vegetation.

Here is a link that might be useful: Tree Guards

Couldn't get the tree guards link to open, but what we use-by the thousands-are white, corrugated plastic draintile-type cylinders with a slit cut on one side for placement/removal. White is important-you don't want things heating up as they might with black plastic-and if you've really got a bunch to protect, these are the way to go.

+oM

On young newly planted tree, I leave the sleeves that are put on at the nursery that identifies what kind of tree it is. On the place where I buy trees these sleeves are about 5 inches wide, and about 12 to 18" long protecting the tree until it becomes quite large