Windell, Keith . 1999. Tree Girdling Tools. 9924 2809. Missoula, MT: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, National Technology and Development Program.
Describes an evaluation of four tools that were used to girdle trees in steep terrain on the Boise National Forest's Idaho City Ranger District. Girdling severs a ring of bark and cambium around a tree's trunk, killing the tree. The girdlers that were evaluated included a hand ax, a prototype two-handed cutting tool fashioned from a leaf spring, a commercially available power girdler with a rotary cutting head (the Li'l Beaver), and a standard chain saw. Trees between 4 and 12 inches diameter breast height (d.b.h.) were most efficiently girdled with the Li'l Beaver. Trees larger than 12 inches d.b.h. were most efficiently girdled with the chain saw. For hand tools, the hand ax was more efficient than the leaf spring girdling tool. The report lists suppliers for girdling tools.
Keywords: biomass, disposal, management
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