Effects of Interactions Among Two Prescribed Fires, Cover Type, and Canopy Cover on Oak and Red Maple Regeneration in Northern Lower Michigan
Effects of Interactions Among Two Prescribed Fires, Cover Type, and Canopy Cover on Oak and Red Maple Regeneration in Northern Lower Michigan

Author: William W. DeBord

Publisher:

Published: 2010

Total Pages: 84

ISBN-13:

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The process of regenerating oak (Quercus spp.) is problematic on most intermediate to high-quality sites throughout the eastern US. Oak is often present in the overstory and abundant in the understory, but is absent from the midstory due to increased competition from less-valuable mesic species such as Liriodendron tulipifera and Acer rubrum. Red maple has expanded its range dramatically since fire suppression began in the 1930s, and is an important competitor of oak. To study relationships between oak and silvicultural treatments, an experiment was initiated in 1990 that included three northern red oak (Quercus rubra)-dominated stands and three red pine (Pinus resinosa) plantations in northern Lower Michigan. Areas of each stand were thinned to four levels of canopy cover in 1991: clearcut, 25% residual canopy, 75% residual canopy, and uncut control, with caged and uncaged northern red oak seedlings planted within each treatment. A thick midstory of red maple developed over the subsequent ten years, hindering development of advance oak regeneration. Low-intensity, early-spring prescribed fires were conducted on all stands in 2002 and 2008 in an effort to control red maple. Heights of planted red oak and naturally occurring red maple and oak regeneration in three size classes were measured before and after each fire with the objectives to: 1) Test the hypothesis that oak sprouts would have greater height growth after the 2008 prescribed burn than after the 2002 prescribed burn; 2) Test the hypotheses that (a) red maple stems would be reduced to a greater degree following the 2008 burn than following the 2002 burn, and that (b) the number of natural oak stems would be increased to a greater degree following the 2008 burn than following the 2002 burn; and 3) Evaluate the relationships between post-burn planted oak sprout height and pre-burn planted oak sprout height, fire temperature, and canopy cover. Following the second fire, planted oak sprouts increased in height rapidly in pine stands, where there was little red maple competition, but grew less rapidly in oak stands. Red maple densities decreased more following the first fire than the second fire. The hypothesis that natural oak regeneration stem densities would increase to a greater degree following the 2008 burn than following the 2007 burn was not supported. Pre-burn planted oak height was the best predictor of post-burn planted oak height.

Seed Bank Response to Prescribed Fire in the Central Appalachians
Seed Bank Response to Prescribed Fire in the Central Appalachians

Author:

Publisher:

Published: 2010

Total Pages: 16

ISBN-13:

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Pre- and post-treatment seed-bank characteristics of woody species were compared after two prescribed fires in a mesic mixed-oak forest in the central Appalachians. Nineteen woody species were identified from soil samples. Mean species richness declined but evenness did not after prescribed burning. The seed bank was dominated by black birch, yellow-poplar, blackberry, grapevine and Hercules club before burning. Following burning, the median density of seed bank propagules declined by 45 percent. Black birch, yellow-poplar, and grapevine declined by 69, 56, and 40 percent, respectively. The results illustrate the importance of the seed bank as a robust source of non-oak regeneration in mixed-oak forests and of the potential effect of fire altering it.

Impacts of Burn Season and Topographic Position on the First Year Response of Oak and Red Maple Regeneration to Prescribed Fire in Southern Ohio
Impacts of Burn Season and Topographic Position on the First Year Response of Oak and Red Maple Regeneration to Prescribed Fire in Southern Ohio

Author: Doug John Schwemlein

Publisher:

Published: 2006

Total Pages: 194

ISBN-13:

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Abstract: The use of prescribed fire to maintain and restore oak (Quercus spp.) ecosystems is becoming an increasingly accepted silvicultural tool; however, specific management recommendations have been slow to develop as past studies have shown mixed results. By examining fire behavior and post-burn tree response this study attempted to offer further insight into the use of prescribed fire to effectively regenerate oak. Prescribed burns were performed in 2004 in two Ohio mixed-oak forests that encompassed 96 and 170 hectares. One forest was burned late-March and the other was burned early-November. Within the two study areas, sites were chosen that were representative of different aspects and slope positions. In each site, selected oak and red maple (Acer rubrum) seedlings and saplings were measured, fuel was characterized, and temperature gauges were installed, prior to the burns. Immediately after the burns, temperature gauges were collected and the readings recorded. One full growing season after each burn, oak and red maple seedlings and saplings were evaluated for mortality and sprout response. Fall burn fire temperatures were significantly hotter than the spring burn across all aspects and slope positions. Temperature gauges also indicated that flame lengths were higher during the fall burn. Oak and red maple were both found to exhibit a positive correlation between fire temperature and number of sprouts produced. Red maple showed a more prolific sprouting response than oak in terms of sprouts per stem; however, oak stems produced significantly taller sprouts than red maple. The results of this study did not show conclusive evidence that a single fire enhances oak regeneration. In fact, some of the data suggests that a single fire may actually benefit red maple. A longer-term study that tracks the canopy ascension of such sprouts would be needed to assess the end result of such a burn.

The Photoload Sampling Technique
The Photoload Sampling Technique

Author: Robert E. Keane

Publisher:

Published: 2007

Total Pages: 50

ISBN-13:

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Fire managers need better estimates of fuel loading so they can more accurately predict the potential fire behavior and effects of alternative fuel and ecosystem restoration treatments. This report presents a new fuel sampling method, called the photoload sampling technique, to quickly and accurately estimate loadings for six common surface fuel components (1 hr, 10 hr, 100 hr, and 1000 hr downed dead woody, shrub, and herbaceous fuels). This technique involves visually comparing fuel conditions in the field with photoload sequences to estimate fuel loadings. Photoload sequences are a series of downward-looking and close-up oblique photographs depicting a sequence of graduated fuel loadings of synthetic fuelbeds for each of the six fuel components. This report contains a set of photoload sequences that describe the range of fuel component loadings for common forest conditions in the northern Rocky Mountains of Montana, USA to estimate fuel loading in the field. A companion publication (RMRS-RP-61CD) details the methods used to create the photoload sequences and presents a comprehensive evaluation of the technique.

Characterizing Effects of Prescribed Fire on Forest Canopy Cover in the George Washington and Jefferson National Forests
Characterizing Effects of Prescribed Fire on Forest Canopy Cover in the George Washington and Jefferson National Forests

Author: Jean Lorber

Publisher:

Published: 2018

Total Pages: 0

ISBN-13:

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"On the George Washington and Jefferson National Forests, managers have used prescribed fire to create and maintain early-successional and open forest conditions across large areas. We used a landscape-scale and image-based approach to assess the extent that prescribed fires, including repeated fires, have created these forest conditions and put the results in context of the new George Washington National Forest management plan. At the landscape level, early-successional forest made up an average of 5 percent of burn unit area after one burn, 9 percent after two fires, 17 percent after three fires, and 14 percent after four fires. On average across all burn unit acreage, open forest made up 5 percent of the area after one burn, 7 percent after two burns, 9 percent after three, and 8 percent after four fires. The forest plan desired condition of 12 percent of the area in early-successional forest was met after three or four fires and was exceeded in some individual burn units. It is harder to achieve open-forest than early-successional conditions using prescribed fire alone. We also examined possible drivers of canopy gap creation in these forests. Vegetation type and heat load index, a topographic-based measure of solar radiation received by a site, were important predictors of where canopy gaps formed after prescribed fire." "--

Effects of Fire and Thinning on Kansas Oak Woodlands
Effects of Fire and Thinning on Kansas Oak Woodlands

Author: Mary Faith Short

Publisher:

Published: 2017

Total Pages: 112

ISBN-13:

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Prior to Euro-American settlement, a mosaic of prairie, savanna, woodland, and forest existed within the Forest-Prairie Transition Region of the United States, with anthropogenic fire acting as an important driver in the perpetuation of open-oak communities. As fire suppression became a regular practice throughout the 20th century, these historically open communities became threatened by encroaching fire-sensitive, and often shade-tolerant, species. This study evaluated the effects of prescribed fire and thinning treatments as methods to achieve woodland restoration objectives, which commonly include reducing stand density, reducing mesophytic oak-competitors, increasing canopy openness, increasing herbaceous plant cover, and promoting the regeneration of oak. We investigated the effects of six treatment types on the structure and composition of a Kansas oak woodland. Treatments included: prescribed fire (burn), thin to 60 ft sq/acre basal area (T60), thin to 30 ft sq/acre basal area (T30), the combination of fire and thin to 60 ft sq/acre basal area (BT60), the combination of fire and thin to 30 ft sq/acre basal area (BT30), and an untreated control. Additionally, we examined the effect of fire on advance regeneration survival probability for five tree species: chinkapin oak (Quercus muehlenbergii), black oak (Q. velutina), bitternut hickory (Carya cordiformis), sugar maple (Acer saccharum), and eastern redcedar (Juniperus virginiana). Following a single girdle and herbicide application thinning treatment, we found low mortality in the first year, especially for sugar maple. As a result, the reduction in overstory basal area did not meet our intended targets. A single dormant season prescribed burn was effective at reducing large and small seedling densities of sugar maple and other oak-competitors, and increased forb and legume cover in the understory. However, the burn only treatment had no effect on overstory stand metrics, including basal area, tree density, percent stocking, and canopy openness. Thinning of the overstory and midstory in combination with prescribed fire resulted in similar effects to seedling densities and ground flora cover as the burn only treatment, but also created reduced tree density in the sapling layer and greater canopy openness. Additionally, the effect of the burn only treatment on advance regeneration revealed that significant relationships exist between pretreatment stem basal diameter and height and the probability of surviving a single fire for some of the species. These initial results are for the first year following treatments and over time we expect vegetation dynamics to continue to respond to treatments.