Skip to Main Content
U.S. Forest Service
Caring for the land and serving people

United States Department of Agriculture

Home > Search > Publication Information

  1. Overstory tree mortality resulting from reintroducing fire to long-unburned longleaf poine forests: the importance of duff moisture.

    Share via EmailShare on FacebookShare on LinkedInShare on Twitter
    Dislike this pubLike this pub
    Author(s): J.M. Varner; J.K. Hiers; R.D. Ottmar; D.R. Gordon; F.E. Putz; D.D. Wade
    Date: 2007
    Source: Canadian Journal of Forest Research. 37: 1349-1358
    Publication Series: Scientific Journal (JRNL)
    PDF: Download Publication  (2.2 MB)

    Description

    In forests historically maintained by frequent fire, reintroducing fire after decades of exclusion often causes widespread overstory mortality. To better understand this phenomenon. we subjected 16 fire-excluded (ca. 40 years since fire) 10-ha longleaf pine (Pinus palustris Mill.) stands to one of four replicated burning treatments based on volumetric duff moisture content (VDMC): wet (115 percent VDMC): moist (85 percent VDMC); dry (55 percent VDMC); and a no-burn control. During the first 2 years postfire, overstory pines in the dry burns suffered the greatest mortality (mean 20.5 percent); pine mortality in the wet and moist treatments did not differ from the control treatment. Duff reduction was greatest in the dry burns (mean 46.5 percent), with minimal reduction in the moist and wet burns (14.5 and 5 percent, respectively). Nested logistic regression using trees from all treatments revealed that the best predictors of individual pine mortality were duff consumption and crown scorch (P < 0.001; R2 = 0.34). Crown scorch was significant only in dry burns, whereas duff consumption was significant across all treatments. Duff consumption was related to moisture content in lower duff (Oa; R2 = 0.78, P < 0.001). Restoring fire to long-unburned forests will require development of burn prescriptions that include the effects of duff consumption, an often overlooked fire effect.

    Publication Notes

    • You may send email to pnw_pnwpubs@fs.fed.us to request a hard copy of this publication.
    • (Please specify exactly which publication you are requesting and your mailing address.)
    • We recommend that you also print this page and attach it to the printout of the article, to retain the full citation information.
    • This article was written and prepared by U.S. Government employees on official time, and is therefore in the public domain.

    Citation

    Varner, J.M., III; Hiers, J.K.; Ottmar, R.D.; Gordon, D.R.; Putz, F.E.; Wade, D.D. 2007. Overstory tree mortality resulting from reintroducing fire to long-unburned longleaf poine forests: the importance of duff moisture. Canadian Journal of Forest Research. 37: 1349-1358

    Keywords

    Longleaf pine, duff consumption, fire prescribed fire, crown scorch, southern forests

    Related Search

    XML: View XML
Show More
Show Fewer
Jump to Top of Page
https://www.fs.usda.gov/treesearch/pubs/29337