Green Horizons

Just like home repairs, certain woodland jobs can be accomplished quickly and efficiently if the right tool is used. Over the next few issues of Green Horizons, we will highlight several of the most common tools that woodland owners may need or come in contact with while managing and caring for their woodlands. While every woodland owner does not necessarily need all the tools discussed, many could benefit by adding some of these tools to their toolbox. Knowing something about them will improve communication with foresters and loggers. Ready? Let’s begin!

Professional Foresters
Without a doubt, a professional forester is the most valuable “tool” in the box. A professional forester is someone who has a degree from an accredited forestry school and maintains his or her professional credentials through continuing education and experience. Professional foresters include resource foresters with the Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC), foresters with the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), and private consulting foresters. They often can provide you with options you never considered and help you improve your management, inventory your woodlands, provide maps, recommend forestry practices, provide cost share and technical assistance, and in the case of consulting foresters, help you sell your timber. The primary source of foresters for Missouri woodland owners are the MDC www.mdc.mo.gov/forest/contacts/ or the Missouri Consulting Foresters Association www.missouriforesters.com/

Compass
While most woodland owners will not get lost on their property, a compass will allow you to determine the aspect of a slope, the bearing or azimuth of a property line, and the direction of a road or trail. This information can be very useful in communicating with those working on your property, including foresters, loggers and contractors. A compass can also be important in an emergency. A cheap compass is often all that is necessary and can be purchased for $15 to $50.

Flagging
Colored flagging can be used for a large number of forestry-related tasks, including marking crop trees, temporary boundary marking, delineating trails and potential location of activities, and anything else of interest that will need to be located again. Flagging comes in rolls made either of vinyl, which will last a couple of years, or a biodegradable material that lasts about a year. Vinyl flags come on metal wires that can be stuck in the ground. These flags are great for marking small plants of interest in the forest or during tree planting in fields. Both flags and flagging can be written on with a permanent marker, and purchased from local hardware stores as well as mail order forestry supply companies, such as Forestry Suppliers (www.forestry-suppliers.com/) or Ben Meadows (www.benmeadows.com/)

In the next issue, we will add diameter tapes, scale sticks, and increment borers to the toolbox.