FORESTRY
Merit Badge
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Mr. R.

"Good timber does not grow with ease, the stronger the wind, the stronger the trees..."

– Douglas Malloch 

 
Mr. R's Forestry Passport© (a 4"x5" pocket guide) is available in PDF format to print out for non-profit use (requires free Adobe Acrobat© Reader).  Passports are copyrighted, but scouts and troops may use them free of charge if they create only one per scout.  BSA councils must first contact Mr. R. before creating large quantities for scout camps, merit badge fairs, etc. (a small nominal fee will be charged).

 
Read one of my favorite poems
Good Timber by Douglas Malloch
(it really applies to leaders rearing young men)

 
Req
#1
Prepare a field notebook, make a collection, and identify 15 species of trees or wild shrubs in a local forested area. Include a written description of:
a. Identifying characteristics of leaf, twig, and fruit samples 
b. The habitat in which these trees or shrubs are found 
c. Chief ways each tree or shrub is used by human or wildlife 
d. The forest's successional stage, what its history has been, and what its future is

 
Req
#2
Do ONE of the following: 
a. Collect and identify wood samples of 10 species of trees. List several ways each species of wood can be used.
b. Find and examine several stumps or logs that show variations in growth rate in their ring patterns. Prepare a field notebook describing their location and discuss possible reasons for the variations.

 
Req
#3
Be able to do the following: 
(part a) Describe contributions forests make to:
  • Our economy in the form of products 
  • Our social well-being 
  • Soil protection and increased fertility
  • Clean water 
  • Clean air 
  • Wildlife 
  • Recreation 
(part b) Tell which watershed or other source your community relies on for its water supply. 
  • USFS  Recreation
  • GORP  Activities - List of many activities and web sites
  • EPA  What is a watershed?
  • EPA  Locate your watershed
  • USGS  Locate your watershed (click map)
NOTE: Forests provide activities such as walking, hiking and backpacking, fishing and hunting, wildlife viewing, cross-country and downhill skiing, and snowmobiling.

NOTE: The government argues that Canadian forests are able to remove and store large amounts of carbon dioxide — currently the main contributor to the greenhouse effect, which is blamed for global warming — and they breathe out oxygen.

http://temagami.carleton.ca/jmc/cnews/20102000/n4.htm

 
Req
#4
Be able to describe what forest management means, including:
  • Multiple-use management
  • Even-aged/uneven-aged management and silvicultural systems associated with each type 
  • Intermediate cuttings
  • How prescribed burning and related forest management practices are used

 
Req
#5
Do ONE of the following:
a. Visit a managed public or private forest area with its manager or someone familiar with it. Write a brief report describing:
  • The type of forest
  • The management objectives
  • The forestry techniques used to acheive the objectives
b. Take a trip to a logging operation or wood-using industrial plant and write a brief report describing:
  • The species and size of trees being harvested or used 
  • Where the trees are going to or coming from
  • What products are made from the trees or at the plant
  • How the products are made 
  • How the products are used 
  • How waste materials from the logging operation or plant are disposed of or utilized
  • USDA Forest Service  Click on desired state and desired forest to find the address of that Forest Service.
  • Utah Industrial  Lists logging operations in Utah
  • Check local lumber yards in your area

 
Req
#6
Be able to do the following: 
a. Describe the damages to forests that result from: 
  • Wildfire
  • Insects 
  • Tree disease
  • Overgrazing
  • Improper harvest

Bark Beetles
b. Tell what can be done to reduce these damages. 
c. Tell what you should do if you discover a forest fire and how to control it. 
  • USFS  Forest Pests in the Southern Region: Insects - Diseases
  
NOTE: If you discover a fire in the forest, including an unattended campfire, please call 911 as soon as possible.  Provide as much information as you can about the fire's location--road numbers, intersections, trail names, name of the nearest campground and distance to those location.  Drive carefully--firefighters may have already been notified and crews and equipment could be traveling to the fire on Forest roads. 
http://www.fs.fed.us/r5/inyo/passespermits/campfire.html

 
Req
#7
Do ONE of the following: 
a. Assist in carrying out a project that meets one or more of these objectives: timber stand improvement, watershed improvement, wildlife habitat improvement, recreation area improvement, or range improvement. 
b. Take part in a forest fire prevention campaign in cooperation with your local fire warden, forester, or counselor. 
c. Visit with one of more local foresters and write a brief report including education, qualifications, career opportunities, and objectives relating to forestry. 
  • USDA Forest Service  Click on desired state and desired forest to find the address of that Forest Service.

Forestry Merit Badge
BSA Advancement ID#: 54
Pamphlet Revision Date: 1984
Requirements last updated in 1984
 

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Webpage updated December 2003
Webmaster, Mr. R.