A dibble for Christmas.

A CORNUCOPIA OF GIFT IDEAS FOR THE TREE LOVER--FROM TOOLS TO DROOL FOR TO BIODEGRADABLE BIRDHOUSES TO HIGH-REACH PRUNERS.

IF WE HAD NOT invented tools to help us cope with natural events, we humans would probably exist today only as fossils.

The flip side, some would say, is that with tools we have so much control over nature and so little wisdom that we might endanger the life-systems on which all living things rely.

We can curse the gun for shooting people and the ax for cutting trees, but let's admit that tools do nothing without us--we are their builders and users, and we're not going to put them away. Tools are the human advantage in a competitive world.

And without tools, what would we give and get for Christmas?

The right tools make it easier to work with trees and forests, and for those of us who are tool-junkies, they're a delight to have. Many tree and forest tools are not to be found in local hardware stores or sprawling malls. They are buried in the catalogs and other publications of forestry professionals. But you don't have to be a professional to get these things and learn to use them.

A sampling of sources and free 800 phone lines follows to help you locate tree toys (uh, tools). These companies deal in a broad span of tree and forest tools ranging from simple $30 dibbles (strong steel bars for hand-whumping tree-planting holes into difficult soil) to a battery-powered Belfort Pyranograph (a device for measuring variations in solar radiation--cheaper than a mink coat but not much).

You'll find knowledgeable and helpful people staffing the catalog lines. They tell me they are dealing more and more with nonprofessionals as interest in caring for natural systems spreads.

TREE AND FOREST-EQUIPMENT COMPANIES (broad categories)

Bailey's, Laytonville, CA. Catalog: 800/322-4539. Safety gear, outdoor wear, and forestry equipment. One feature is the little red TreePee--a self-staking shelter designed to protect seedlings from grazing wildlife, herbicides, and wandering machinery.

Forestry Suppliers, Jackson, MS. Catalog: 800/647-5368. Reach its very helpful technical service staff at 800/430-5566.

Forestry Suppliers' 400-page catalog has plenty of tools to drool for. An abbreviated catalog, TreeTools, is a less-than-20-page collection of basic tools. On the back of a recent TreeTools (next to the pith helmets) you'll find bluebird and wood-duck nesting boxes made of wax-coated cardboard. They'll survive two years outside before starting to biodegrade back into humus. Diseases tend to build up in permanent nesting boxes, so temporary ones are a good choice ($3 each for quantities of one to nine for bluebirds, $5 each for wood ducks). These two species of cavity-nesting birds have suffered considerable population declines due to decreasing numbers of hole-riddled, dead trees. The birds are on the upswing now, and nesting boxes have helped carry them over.

Ben Meadows, Atlanta, GA. Catalog: 800/241-6401. Similar to Forestry Suppliers.

Here are some useful tools you'll find in the catalogs above:

Poison Oak and Ivy Cleanser ($13.95 for a 32-ounce bottle): removes the irritating oils of poison oak, ivy, or sumac from your skin, and for most people will also stop the rash and itching from exposure.

Woodsman Hardhat (under $30): With hearing, head, and face protection, this hardhat will protect you from being deafened by machine noise, whacked by falling branches, or blinded by flying chips. It also would be useful for occasions such as a Grateful Dead concert.

Nine-Pocket Field Vest (about $50): The nine useful pockets include two big ones in back (one can hold a map and an assortment on the front and sides for holding pens, tools, and accessories). Sizes 36 to 50. Comes in high-visibility orange that makes it clear you're not a deer. Husbands and boyfriends--get one for the woman in your life; she'll never have to rummage in her purse again, and you can always find her in a crowd, or in the woods. Wives and girlfriends--you'll notice that the vest he bought for you is in his size and ends up in his closet.

Felco Folding Saw ($17.50): Handy for camping or tree-pruning excursions. Only eight inches long when folded, 14 inches long unfolded, with a six-inch, nonclogging, nonbinding blade capable of cutting stems up to four inches in diameter. It has a bright red handle so you can find it when you drop it. A leather holster costs $6.25 in case you want to quick-draw when you see something you want to saw.

Chainsaw Chaps ($70 to $90, depending on size): Power saws slip. Cuts on the legs are a major risk. Get these to protect your legs from injury. Kevlar and Cordura fabric can stop saw teeth whirling at up to 3,300 feet per minute.

Compasses ($12 to $80, depending on features): To keep you going straight, there are a variety of accurate, easy-to-read compasses, some with sighting mirrors and luminous points for low-light conditions.

Clinometers (about $90): For measuring height, slope, and vertical angles. With these instruments you can tell: Exactly how tall is that tree? What is the slope of that hill?

Hip Chain Distance Measure ($100 plus): Tie the line to a tree; as you walk, the meter records the distance. At the end of a measurement, break off the disposable line, reset, and move on. Great for marking and measuring plots. Tie the line to small children, and see how many miles they put on in a day.

Deer Away repellent ($23.50 a gallon): Developed by Weyerhaeuser Co., EPA registered. If deer and elk are munching on your seedlings or shrubbery, this stuff will repel them, using an odor based on inedible egg solids. One gallon mixes with water to protect 400 seedlings. One applications is effective for eight to 10 weeks. This might also keep salespeople and pollsters away from your front door.

Other catalog treasures: bright-colored flagging and tree paint for marking plots and boundaries; increment borers for extracting cores of wood to tell the ages and growth rates of trees without cutting them down; cant hooks, pickeroons, and hookaroons for holding and moving logs; specialized shovels and hoes for planting or seeding; winches, levers, and jacks for directional felling of trees and moving heavy material; more than 26 different kinds of pruners; soil samplers and testers; rugged woods wearing apparel; safety equipment, signs, and on and on.

SPECIAL PRODUCTS

Need to prune branches high up without climbing? Technic Tool Corp. of Lewiston, ID (800/243-9592) makes a gas-powered, portable, telescoping pruner that reaches to 17 feet. Husqvarna Home and Garden makes a similar pruner (look for dealers in the phone book). These tools are expensive, but if you're doing a lot of pruning, they are worth the cost.

Doggett Tree Fertilizer Co., Lebanon, NJ (800/448-1862) has a catalog of specialized tree fertilizers. It also offers an index of publications on tree nutrition.

Seedlings to protect? Treessentials Co., St. Paul, MN (800/248-8239) specializes in tree shelters. It also carries VisPore Tree Mats. Place the mats around planted trees, and the roots get water but competing weeds get killed. Starter kits are available (four one-foot-tall shelters with four stakes cost about $8; four VisPore Tree Mats with 20 stakes cost $8).

Erosion problems? North American Green, Evansville IL (800/772-2040) carries BioNet erosion-control blankets of various types for holding soil and seeds on erodible slopes.

Tools used in the right ways can do wonders for trees and forests. As proof, see "The Kid Pasture That Became A Working Forest."

The next time we meet, I'll offer some things to think about on long winter nights. At our present standard of living, the average American goes through three million pounds of "stuff" in 75 years. How do we fit together strategies of using, conserving, reusing, recycling, and renewing resources? It's more than having someone haul off your separated trash. I'll discuss keeping some of your organic material at home and recycling it into the soil, as well as the myths of paper recycling (it certainly saves landfill space but may not save the trees you think it will).

QUESTIONS FOR YOUNG PEOPLE (See if you can find the answers in "Green Side Up.")

WHAT AM I TALKING ABOUT? If Sam saws trees Should he cover his knees? If June prunes Should we chase her with pickeroons? Should we lean on our dibbles While a large animal nibbles?

DO YOU THINK THESE STATEMENTS ARE TRUE OR FALSE? Tools can save lives and improve the environment Tools can kill and damage the environment We would live better lives without tools We might not survive without tools Tools are responsible for what they do People are responsible for what tools do

WHICH TOOL IS BEST FOR MEASURING THE HEIGHT OF A TREE OR SLOPE OF A HILL? A barometer A thermometer A clinometer Geometry

A CARTOGRAPHER IS SOMEONE WHO: Draws pictures of cars Sells stuff from a cart Makes maps

IF YOU WERE GOING DEEP INTO THE WOODS, WHAT TOOLS WOULD YOU LIKE TO HAVE WITH YOU? If you owned a tree farm what tools would you buy? What tool is used to find the age and growth rate of trees without cutting them down?

SERIES AUTHOR LESTER DECOSTER is president of The DeCoster Group, a Reston, Virginia, consulting firm offering expertise in writing, public relations, forestry, and environmental science.