Abstract
We examined the long-term effects of a prescribed fire in a southern Appalachian watershed in Nantahala National Forest, western North Carolina, USA. Fire was prescribed in 1995 on this site by forest managers to restore a degraded pine (Pinus spp.)-hardwood community, specifically to stimulate forage production, promote pine and oak (Quercus spp.) regeneration, and increase plant diversity. Before and after the prescribed fire, permanent plots were sampled across a south-facing hillslope, which corresponded to three community types: mesic, near-stream cove (riparian); dry, mixed-oak (mid-slope); and xeric, pine-hardwood (ridge). In an earlier paper, we reported the first two years of post-burn vegetation response from this prescribed burn. In our current study, we compared the pre-burn (1994) forest condition with 10 years post-burn (2005) vegetation measurements to determine the effects of fire on the mortality and regeneration of overstory trees, understory shrubs, and herbaceous-layer species. Overstory mortality was high immediately after the burn at the ridge location and ten years after the fire. Mortality of pitch pine (Pinus rigida Miller) (91.8 %) and hickory (Carya spp.) (77.5 %) reduced overstory basal area from 26.97 m2 ha−1 pre-burn to 18.86 m2 ha−1 post-burn in 1995 and to 9.13 m2 ha−1 in 2005. At the mid-slope and riparian locations, no significant overstory mortality occurred over time. Understory density was significantly higher 10 years after the burn (2005) than pre-burn, and basal area had returned to pre-burn levels. Density of mountain laurel (Kalmia latifolia L.), black huckleberry (Gaylussacia baccata [Wang.] K. Koch), and blueberry (Vaccinium spp.) had increased due to prolific sprouting. The prescribed fire had varying effects on diversity across the hillslope gradient over time. On the ridge, overstory diversity declined following the fire (H’basal area = 1.14 in 1994, H’basal area = 0.75 in 1995, and H’basal area = 0.80 in 2005). Diversity significantly increased in the herbaceous layer and remained higher than pre-burn conditions through 2005 (H’cover = 1.02 in 1994, H’cover = 1.97 in 1995, and H’cover = 2.25 in 2005). For the mid-slope and riparian positions, no change in diversity was observed in the overstory, understory or herbaceous layer.
Highlights
Prescribed burning is currently being used as a management tool to reduce fuel loads, improve wildlife habitat, and to restore ecosystem structure and function in the southern Appalachian forests of the USA that are managed by the Forest Service, the National Park Service, and The Nature Conservancy
In the southern Appalachians, fire has been prescribed as a silvicultural treatment in pinehardwood forests to restore diversity and productivity (Swift et al 1993) and to promote regeneration of native pines and oaks (Vose et al 1994, Vose et al 1997)
Fire can reduce the abundance of mountain laurel and delay its growth (Clinton et al 1993), encourage oaks and various other tree species to sprout (Van Lear and Waldrop 1989), and provide a seedbed where native pines can germinate and become established (Elliott et al 1999a, Waldrop and Brose 1999, Waldrop et al 2000)
Summary
Long-Term effecTs of HigH inTensiTy Prescribed fire on VegeTaTion dynamics in THe Wine sPring creek WaTersHed, WesTern norTH caroLina, Usa. We compared the pre-burn (1994) forest condition with 10 years post-burn (2005) vegetation measurements to determine the effects of fire on the mortality and regeneration of overstory trees, understory shrubs, and herbaceous-layer species. The purpose of the burn was to create a mosaic of fire intensities to restore a pine-hardwood community, stimulate forage production, reduce the understory biomass of mountain laurel and shade-tolerant hardwood species, and promote pine and oak regeneration along the hillslope gradient. We compared the first two years of responses to the pre-burn forest condition (Elliott et al 1999a, Vose et al 1999) This current paper addresses the longer-term effects 10 years after a single, prescribed fire
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