Flagging tape color

[livemusic]

If your tract is to be logged, are you supposed to mark the 'take' trees or the 'leave' trees? Is there a certain color or does it vary a lot?

Do you favor using flagging or paint and what is most common? If paint, how do you mark it and do you just use a brush or what? TIA!

[mudfarmer]

Around here flagging would mostly be used for marking out the landing and trails, riparian boundaries, sometimes harvest boundaries etc.

Your contract should spell out whether it is leave trees or harvest trees that are marked. "Trees to be harvested are marked with [color] paint. All marked trees must be felled." or "Trees not included in harvest are marked with [color] paint. These are not included in sale and are not to be harvested. All non marked trees are included in sale" etc etc and similar.

Wildlife trees are often marked with a W in whatever color and are not to be harvested. Bump trees on skid trails sometimes marked with a B and are to be removed after the portion of the sale beyond is harvested completely.

I'm sure there is lots of regional variation like with everything else and am curious what those might be.

[Magicman]

Our harvest trees are marked with a paint swath at breast height and another on the stump/roots.  The color will be designated on the contract.

Wildlife trees are flagged with ribbon around the perimeter.

[Otis1]

I mostly use flagging for a temporary boundary layout before I paint it. You would use a lot of ribbon and be time consuming if you tied around every cut tree. Generally speaking, you want to mark whichever(cut tree or leave tree) is going to be the least amount of trees so less work. Also depends on if you want to look at reserve tree paint for however many years. Always marked on at least two sides above DBH and a stump mark all the way to the ground preferably kicking the moss off. Stump mark is an accountability method, so that after trees are cut you can still make sure that loggers are only cutting marked trees.

Around here, the USFS uses orange paint for boundary between cutting units, red for private boundaries/ surveying, and blue for cut tree marking. Our state DNR does it the other way and uses blue for boundaries, orange for cut trees, and green if marking reserve trees. I have seen some purple paint for private boundaries. I prefer marking cut trees with blue paint, it is brighter and easier for color blind people people to see. As far as wildlife trees, if I'm cut tree marking, then I just don't mark that tree. If I am reserve tree marking then I will paint it with whatever the reserve color is. 

I think the most used brand is Nelson paint. As far as application, it is usually a spray gun. Either a handheld unit with a quart of paint that you have to squeeze a trigger/pump or something backpack style that will hold a gallon and is pressurized. I use a Panama gun, it can be pressurized like a car tire. I've seen people use one of those backpack pesticide sprayers but I think you have to get the right nozzle. 

According to the side of a Nelson paint box, foresters used to put a rock in a sock and dip it in a gallon of paint and swing away.

If you search for forestry supplies you will find everything you need. 

I'm currently marking 8-10 acres/ day in hardwoods, then Ill be doing some red pine plantations. On track to do over 1,000 acres this summer by myself.

[livemusic]

If harvest trees are marked, everything else is not harvested. So, why would you mark a wildlife tree? Only thing I can think of is it's marked to draw attention and imply "don't knock this tree down!" Assuming that 'wildlife tree' means a dead snag or hollow tree, etc.

Is there any common color used for 'leave it' or 'take it?' -- edit... oops... I see that this was addressed above as I was posting.

[Magicman]

Correct, do not damage the tree in any way. 

[Rhodemont]

I have a harvest in progress.  My Forester used blue paint in a spray pack on his back to mark those trees to be harvested.  Firewood trees got a blue dot about head high.  Timber trees/logs on the tally sheet got a blue  diagonal slash at head height with a dot at the base.  the dot at the base below the cut verifies the tree was to be harvested.  The perimeter of of the cutting doubles up on the dot or slash indicating take this tree but that is as far as you go. A couple 2 acre areas being patch cut to promote oak regeneration are outlined with a vertical slash meaning do not take, this is as far as the patch goes. Those healthy oaks left in the patch to provide mast for regrowth are Marked with a "L" meaning leave do not cut.  After the harvest we (me, Forester, Logger) will walk the acreage and verify all blue dot firewood, blue slash timber (stump with dot) have been taken.  I will get paid by the cordage load of firewood that gets loaded and my percentage of the sawmill tally sheet for logs.  It is all very clearly written in the contract my forester prepared and my logger previewed with some comments before signing.

All the firewood dot trees were cut and stacked this past winter.  No cutting can be done April 15 - Aug 15 because of wildlife (bird and bat) nesting seasons.  In august the logger will start cutting the timber trees and bring in his forwarder to haul out the timber logs and firewood.  A tally will be kept of his firewood truck loads of 7 cord each and I get a copy of the tally sheets from the sawmill.  These will define what $ are coming to me.

I already have a registered forest plan prepared by my Forester.  The Cost for him to mark the trees and prepare contract for the 42 acres was $1500.  I highly suggest anyone getting logging done get a forester who you get along with and agree with his line of thought.  Then let him do what he doe professionally....makes it all so much easier!

Ok: to answer your question, blue paint.

[Old Greenhorn]

I am not involved in this directly either as a forester, cutter, or landowner however, around here if I see a tree with a painted blue band I KNOW it is destined for cutting. Very common. But it's a regional practice I think. I see orange flagged trees, mostly done by landowners to indicate trees they wanted quoted for removal. Homeowners use any old color flagging. Surveyors here use pink for corner markings and sometimes orange for property lines, if they are doing a long string.
 When I started flagging mushroom trees I started with green, but that was hard to find later, especially after leaf out. SO I switched to blue, also hard to see and it might confuse others as to what and why that tree was marked. I finally settled in on a blue/white striped flagging as my 'own' and been using that for a few years. Everybody sees those and knows, or could easily find out, they are 'my' trees. It's unique, and that's what I needed. I gave a couple of rolls to the landowner to keep in his buggies so he can mark trees when he finds them.
 One thing I learned, if you flag trees rather than paint, you have to tie them fairly loose or go around twice. I have some trees out there flagged 3 years and the tree grows and bursts the tape. I've gotten to the point that I put a bow in them and re-use the flagging on other trees because I have gone through quite a few rolls.  It's not a buck a roll anymore.  Also, if I have my left jacket pocket stuffed with used flagging I know I should be thinking about marking more trees.
 I know that doesn't help you a bit, sorry. But it's Sunday night and a bit slow here, so I thought I would just throw it in.

[Ron Scott]

Tree marking paint is a specialty paint used for long lasting on tree bark and comes in a variety of colors which are used for laying out the timber harvest area and designation of the trees to be cut or not cut. Different paint colors and letter codes such as WL for wildlife trees to be left uncut and undamaged are used by the foresters preparing the timber sale. R may be used for reserved trees for whatever the reason spelled out in the harvest contract.

Whatever the colors and codes painted on the trees, they should be spelled out well in the timber harvest contract and shown on the timber sale area map to be followed as designation codes for the logger and their cutters to follow and perform the harvest accordingly.

Marking codes and paint colors are usually common in meaning among the various governmental agencies, consulting, and timber company foresters who lay out the harvest areas and the loggers and their cutters soon learn the colors, designations, and codes and perform the harvest accordingly.

[Machinebuilder]

In many places purple paint is used for no trespassing.

I have looked it up for Tennessee. there has to be a No Trespassing sign with contact information at the main access point.
Then the boundary can be marked with purple paint marks, I think there is a size and distance to be followed.

I don't know about marking timber.

[petefrom bearswamp]

IMO you, use Ron's post
He has a world of experience and a wealth of knowledge

[PJS]

Curious how you guys that mark trees are watching and determining for a wildlife tree?

Been cutting trees, mostly spruce/balsam/pine, but I don't like killing wild critters if I don't have too. I can go past a tree and come back for it later. Other then using a pair of binoculars, any tips or tricks about what one can watch for? 

[Ron Scott]

Wildlife trees are live or dead trees designated for wildlife habitat or retained to become future wildlife habitat.

They are usually over mature trees with obvious dens, nests, and cavities already existing and being actively used by a wildlife game or non-game species or they are tree species that are mast producing and providing a wildlife berry or nut food source such as the oaks, cherries, American beech, ash, hickories, apple, non-timber shrub and berry species etc.

The longer living hardwoods are favored for retention of cavities and dens over the short-lived trees such as the aspens, birches, etc. 1 to 5 such trees are usually designated per acre and marked with a painted "W" or "WL" to be retained and not damaged or fallen in the timber operation. A fine may be assessed the logger as spelled out in the timber harvest contract if they fall or damage the designated wildlife trees in any way.