Conifer Plantation Grazing and Fire Hazard Implications

1979 ◽  
Vol 3 (3) ◽  
pp. 114-118
Author(s):  
Carl C. Wilson ◽  
Edwin H. Collins
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Prescribed Fire ◽  
Fire Hazard ◽  
Cattle Grazing ◽  
Reduction Technique ◽  
Pine Plantations ◽  
Southern United States ◽  
Hazard Reduction ◽  
Conifer Plantation ◽  
Conifer Plantations

Abstract Fire losses occur in young conifer plantations in the southern United States each year primarily because of the hazardous grass and weeds surrounding the trees. Yet, the usual hazard-reduction technique of prescribed fire can't be used safely until the pine plantations reach at least six to eight feet in height. Cattle grazing will not only lessen the fuel hazard, but will also provide desirable forage without damaging the young trees if the livestock are well-managed.

scholarly journals Fuel manipulation with herbicide treatments to reduce fire hazard in young pine (Pinus elliottii × P. caribaea) plantations in south-east Queensland, Australia

2012 ◽  
Vol 21 (8) ◽  
pp. 992 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tom Lewis ◽  
Joanne De Faveri
Keyword(s):  
Adverse Effects ◽  
Tree Growth ◽  
Prescribed Fire ◽  
Fire Hazard ◽  
Dry Weight ◽  
Pinus Elliottii ◽  
Pine Plantations ◽  
Prescribed Burns ◽  
Standing Biomass ◽  
Herbicide Treatments

Wildfire represents a major risk to pine plantations. This risk is particularly great for young plantations (generally less than 10 m in height) where prescribed fire cannot be used to manipulate fuel biomass, and where flammable grasses are abundant in the understorey. We report results from a replicated field experiment designed to determine the effects of two rates of glyphosate (450 g L–1) application, two extents of application (inter-row only and inter-row and row) with applications being applied once or twice, on understorey fine fuel biomass, fuel structure and composition in south-east Queensland, Australia. Two herbicide applications (~9 months apart) were more effective than a once-off treatment for reducing standing biomass, grass continuity, grass height, percentage grass dry weight and the density of shrubs. In addition, the 6-L ha–1 rate of application was more effective than the 3-L ha–1 rate of application in periodically reducing grass continuity and shrub density in the inter-rows and in reducing standing biomass in the tree rows, and application in the inter-rows and rows significantly reduced shrub density relative to the inter-row-only application. Herbicide treatment in the inter-rows and rows is likely to be useful for managing fuels before prescribed fire in young pine plantations because such treatment minimised tree scorch height during prescribed burns. Further, herbicide treatments had no adverse effects on plantation trees, and in some cases tree growth was enhanced by treatments. However, the effectiveness of herbicide treatments in reducing the risk of tree damage or mortality under wildfire conditions remains untested.

scholarly journals Coarse Woody Debris in Southern United States Loblolly Pine Plantations: From Stand-Level to Regional Scales

2011 ◽  
Vol 35 (4) ◽  
pp. 161-169 ◽  
Author(s):  
Huei-Jin Wang ◽  
Philip J. Radtke ◽  
Stephen P. Prisley
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Loblolly Pine ◽  
Coarse Woody Debris ◽  
Power Plants ◽  
Woody Debris ◽  
Dry Weight ◽  
Pine Plantations ◽  
Southern United States ◽  
Carbon Equivalent ◽  
Regional Forest

Abstract Broad-scale estimates of coarse woody debris (CWD) yield across landscapes are somewhat rare, despite the importance of CWD in ecosystem functioning and its potential role in terrestrial carbon cycles. Yields of CWD were estimated at regional scales by linking a stand-level predictive model with regional forest inventory data for 11 states in the southern United States. We estimated that the accumulation of CWD in late-rotation loblolly pine plantations across the South totals 48.67 million metric tons of dry wood necromass, the carbon equivalent of 24.33 million metric tons. This represents annual CO2 emissions of 21 coal-fired power plants, or the amount of carbon sequestered each year in 7 million ha of pine forests. Confidence intervals for CWD dry weight per hectare generally did not exceed ±25% of the estimated values. Although county-level estimates were of higher uncertainty, the spatial pattern appeared to be relatively consistent with the extent of loblolly pine, with low yields near the extremes of the species' natural range and high yields in extensively forested portions of its range. Quantifying regional carbon stores of CWD with respect to stand-level management activities may improve accuracy of regional estimates and provide further insight into management effects on the carbon pool and the carbon cycle.

scholarly journals Perspectives on Prescribed Fire in the South: Does Ethnicity Matter?

2009 ◽  
Vol 33 (1) ◽  
pp. 17-24 ◽  
Author(s):  
Siew Hoon Lim ◽  
J.M. Bowker ◽  
Cassandra Y. Johnson ◽  
H. Ken Cordell
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Side Effects ◽  
African Americans ◽  
Prescribed Fire ◽  
Household Survey ◽  
Southern United States ◽  
The South ◽  
Racial Variation ◽  
Negatively Associated ◽  
Regression Methods

Abstract Using a household survey and regression methods, we assessed preferences for prescribed fire in the southern United States. We found that the majority of the respondents favored the use of prescribed fire. However, we observed pronounced racial variation in opinions on prescribed fire and its side effects. African Americans and Hispanics were less supportive and were more concerned about the side effects of prescribed fire than whites. We also observed that females tended to be more concerned about the side effects of prescribed fire than males. In addition, education had no effect on preference for prescribed fire in general, but education was found to be negatively associated with concern levels in all three models pertaining to concerns over the side effects of prescribed fire. Concern over the side effects diminished as education increased.

Macartney Rose (Rosa bracteata) Response to Herbicide and Mowing Treatments

2013 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 260-267 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephen F. Enloe ◽  
William N. Kline ◽  
Jatinder S. Aulakh ◽  
Rachel K. Bethke ◽  
Jonathan B. Gladney ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Initial Treatment ◽  
Late Summer ◽  
Cattle Grazing ◽  
Southern United States ◽  
Herbicide Treatment ◽  
Forage Species ◽  
Herbicide Treatments ◽  
The Rose ◽  
Thorny Shrub

AbstractMacartney rose is an aggressive thorny shrub that displaces forage species and hinders cattle grazing in rangelands and pastures of the southern United States. Historically, Macartney rose has proven to be extremely difficult to control even with high rates of soil residual herbicides such as picloram. Recent advances in herbicide chemistry warrant testing on this troublesome species. We compared mowing and late summer broadcast applications of thirteen herbicide treatments that included combinations of aminopyralid, fluroxypyr, metsulfuron, picloram, triclopyr, and 2,4-D. Treatments were applied to the same rose clumps for 2 consecutive yr. An additional mowing was done to one half of the rose clumps in each treatment 6 mo after the second herbicide treatment. At 11 mo after initial treatment (MAIT), mowing and all herbicide treatments performed very poorly and provided 35% control or less. At 12 mo after retreatment (24 MAIT), picloram + 2,4-D and aminopyralid + metsulfuron, both followed by mowing, were the most effective treatments, providing 72 to 91% control. All other treatments provided less than 70% control. However, complete clump mortality was very low across all treatments, ranging from 3 to 32%. These results indicate that Macartney rose suppression is possible with certain new herbicides, but complete clump kill is still lacking.

scholarly journals A generalized Reed model with application to wildfire risk in even-aged Southern United States pine plantations

2016 ◽  
Vol 67 ◽  
pp. 60-69 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andres Susaeta ◽  
Douglas R. Carter ◽  
Sun Joseph Chang ◽  
Damian C. Adams
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Pine Plantations ◽  
Southern United States ◽  
Wildfire Risk

A review of prescribed burning effectiveness in fire hazard reduction

2003 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 117 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paulo M. Fernandes ◽  
Hermínio S. Botelho
Keyword(s):  
Prescribed Fire ◽  
Prescribed Burning ◽  
Fire Regime ◽  
Accumulation Rate ◽  
Fire Suppression ◽  
Fire Hazard ◽  
Weather Conditions ◽  
Management Tool ◽  
Adequate Treatment ◽  
Hazard Reduction

Wildfire hazard abatement is one of the major reasons to use prescribed burning. Computer simulation, case studies, and analysis of the fire regime in the presence of active prescribed burning programs in forest and shrubland generally indicate that this fuel management tool facilitates fire suppression efforts by reducing the intensity, size and damage of wildfires. However, the conclusions that can be drawn from the above approaches are limited, highlighting the need for more properly designed experiments addressing this question. Fuel accumulation rate frequently limits prescribed fire effectiveness to a short post-treatment period (2–4 years). Optimisation of the spatial pattern of fire application is critical but has been poorly addressed by research, and practical management guidelines are lacking to initiate this. Furthermore, adequate treatment efforts in terms of fire protection are constrained by operational, social and ecological issues. The best results of prescribed fire application are likely to be attained in heterogeneous landscapes and in climates where the likelihood of extreme weather conditions is low. Conclusive statements concerning the hazard-reduction potential of prescribed fire are not easily generalised, and will ultimately depend on the overall efficiency of the entire fire management process.

A Burning Problem: Social Dynamics of Disaster Risk Reduction through Wildfire Mitigation

2015 ◽  
Vol 74 (4) ◽  
pp. 329-340 ◽  
Author(s):  
Susan Charnley ◽  
Melissa R. Poe ◽  
Alan A. Ager ◽  
Thomas A. Spies ◽  
Emily K. Platt ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Risk Reduction ◽  
Disaster Risk Reduction ◽  
Social Dynamics ◽  
Natural Hazard ◽  
Fire Hazard ◽  
Disaster Risk ◽  
Hazard Reduction ◽  
Natural Hazard Mitigation ◽  
The Social

Disasters result from hazards affecting vulnerable people. Most disasters research by anthropologists focuses on vulnerability; this article focuses on natural hazards. We use the case of wildfire mitigation on United States Forest Service lands in the northwestern United States to examine social, political, and economic variables at multiple scales that influence fire hazard and risk reduction treatments and their effectiveness. Variables highlighted include policy direction to prioritize wildfire risk reduction in the wildland-urban interface, laws and policies that make treating fuels in some national forest land management allocations challenging, social and political constraints on using prescribed fire, agency budget and target pressures, and integrating fire hazard reduction into forest management projects having multiple objectives. These variables compromise the effectiveness of wildfire mitigation treatments. Understanding the social dynamics of natural hazard mitigation is important because they affect its outcomes, creating differential exposure to natural hazards—one component of social vulnerability. Interdisciplinary research to identify how the social dynamics of natural hazard mitigation influence hazard reduction outcomes can contribute to more informed and effective approaches to disaster risk reduction.

scholarly journals Tree Nutrition and Forest Fertilization of Pine Plantations in the Southern United States

2007 ◽  
Vol 31 (1) ◽  
pp. 5-11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas R. Fox ◽  
H. Lee Allen ◽  
Timothy J. Albaugh ◽  
Rafael Rubilar ◽  
Colleen A. Carlson
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Leaf Area ◽  
Nutrient Availability ◽  
Coastal Plain ◽  
Growth Response ◽  
Soil Nutrient ◽  
Pine Plantations ◽  
Southern United States ◽  
Forest Fertilization ◽  
Soil Nutrient Availability

Abstract The growth of many pine plantations in the southern United States is limited by soil nutrient availability. Therefore, forest fertilization is a common silvicultural practice throughout the South. Approximately 1.2 million ac of pine plantations were fertilized in 2004. In the last 10 years, considerable advances have been made in identifying the ecophysiological basis for stand growth and the response to fertilizer additions. Nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) are the nutrients that most commonly limit growth of southern pine. On wet clay soils in the lower Coastal Plain and on some well-drained soil in the upper Coastal Plain, severe P deficiencies exist. On these soils, P fertilization with 25–50 lb of P per acre at the time of planting produces a large and sustained growth response, on the order of 50 ft3 ac−1 yr−1 (1.5 tn ac−1 yr−1) throughout the rotation. On most other soils in the South, chronic deficiencies of both N and P exist. On these sites, soil nutrient availability often is adequate early in the rotation when tree demand is small. However, around the time of crown closure, N and P frequently become limiting. Fertilization with both N and P in these intermediate aged stands typically increases growth for 8–10 years. The growth response to a combination of 25 lb of P per acre plus 200 lb of N per acre averages around 55 ft3 ac−1 yr−1 (1.6 tn ac−1 yr−1) for an 8-year period. The amount of leaf area in the stand is the main factor determining the current growth rate of the stand and the potential growth response after fertilization. When stand leaf area index is less than 3.5, light capture by the stand is restricted and growth is negatively affected. In many of these stands, fertilization will increase leaf area because of increased soil nutrient availability and thus increase growth. The financial return after fertilization depends on the growth response that occurs, the cost of the fertilizer treatment, and the stumpage value of the timber produced. Using a growth response of 55 ft3 ac−1 yr−1 over 8 years, a fertilizer cost of $90 ac−1, and stumpage values from the first quarter of 2006, the internal rate of return from midrotation fertilization of a loblolly pine plantation with N and P would be approximately 16%.

scholarly journals Prescribed Fire — Its Place in Reforestation

1970 ◽  
Vol 46 (6) ◽  
pp. 448-451
Author(s):  
A. D. Kiil ◽  
Z. Chrosciewicz
Keyword(s):  
Prescribed Fire ◽  
Forest Fires ◽  
Forest Ecosystems ◽  
Prescribed Burning ◽  
Fire Hazard ◽  
Close Association ◽  
The Public ◽  
Hazard Reduction ◽  
Resource Managers

Forest fires have played an important role in determining the type and composition of forest ecosystems in the temperate region of North America. The close association between fires and forest ecosystems has helped the resource manager to interpret the significance of fire in reforestation, which in turn has induced him to use burning for this specific purpose. Until very recently, however, most of the burns in Canada have been carried out primarily for slash-fire-hazard reduction. Considerations in the planning and use of prescribed fire for hazard reduction and reforestation are inextricably linked and sometimes complementary. In addition to protection and reforestation objectives, prescribed burning should find wide application in the management of wildlife habitats and watersheds. Recommendations are made to assist resource managers and the public in appreciating more fully the present and potential role of fire in the forest ecosystems.

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