How to protect plants from sheep?

[ItsInTheSpoon]

Can anyone suggest a way to protect small shrubs/trees from being nibbled by sheep? Not too expensive but preferably reasonably nice looking?
(Posted on gardening but no replies so hoping for some here!)

[Heyha]

Depends on which bits the sheep are eating and if the sheep are in with the trees or in the neighbouring fields...

Only something higher than a sheep can reach up when stood on its back legs, and solid, would stop mine completely (or moving the fence further away so they can't stretch to reach) but they are clever little buggers!

[ItsInTheSpoon]

@Heyha thanks for replying!

The sheep are in with the trees. (I may have to move them back out!) The trees are very small and mostly difficult to reach but the sheep have got at a few - I was going to try making cylinders of chicken wire but I think they won’t be very effective - the sheep are very large.

[Heyha]

That's good in some ways-once they've nibbled the leaves off the bits they can reach they'll move onto destroying something else 😂 chicken wire might well do the job protecting the bark. The other thing to watch out for is if the sheep want something to scratch on in the run-up to shearing, if you've any trees that could do with a stake and tie now would be a good time to get that done.
On the plus side, at least you're not dealing with goats 😂

[PrincessTiggerlily]

Neighbours have sheep - they never let sheep in the orchard because they say they would ringbark the trees which would then dies. So I think the trees need protection.

[ItsInTheSpoon]

Thank you both very much!

I’ve constructed one (pathetically flimsy-looking) chicken wire cage around one very small tree and will keep an eye on further chomping.... the trouble is, they are brilliant at keeping the grass down. I know what you mean about the trees, @Princess Tiggerlily , as they did that in a previous field ☹️

[ItsInTheSpoon]

Chicken wire around bigger tree trunks is a good idea to try - I had those plastic spirally strips but they have gone very brittle with age (and then come off in sharp, dangerous pieces!) and anyway many of the trees they were round are too wide in girth now