Rebirth

Seekseekqua Mountain (Mt. Jefferson) Wilderness

With the arrival of cooler, wet weather here in the lowlands of western Oregon, we need to pull out our good warm boots and pack our rain gear for the next outing! After another long dry summer with a dozen large wildfires and about 1,000 smaller ones just here in Oregon, it is a relief to see moisture again. And all across the west, fires raged through forested areas and populated locations as well, sometimes with tragic results. Most of these fires were caused by lightning, but sadly, a few were human-caused.

Nature-caused fires have been around long before we humans arrived and are regarded by most forestry scientists as healthy and necessary for the long term success of the larger ecosystems. Of course, when fires encroach on towns and structures we do our best to control and limit the damage from these. On the other hand, in wilderness areas or remote areas, response might be calibrated to the situation. We won't delve into that topic here as it has been extensively studied and written about by experts around the globe.

In this post, we want to share a few of the recent botanical "rebirth" observations we have seen out in the field. Following a fire, our native plants seem to "know" exactly what to do and when to do it. This botanical safeguard, so to speak, is notable because it ensures the continued propagation of the most basic plant communities in the affected areas; and it begins a long term cycle of growth for an entire habitat. 

Of course it's hard to appreciate the importance of this fire cycle when you are out for a walk in the charred remains of a once beautiful forest. Or when you planned a summer vacation at a national park and upon arrival you can't see the views due to smoke in the air. But nevertheless, there is some degree of excitement when you see the first batch of plants making a go of it - typically a year or two after a fire. 

Here are some places we have recently noted in fire recovery.

Pacific Crest Trail near Cascade Locks, OR, September 2018. The understory is getting some traction, just one year after the human caused Eagle Creek fire. Here we see Thimbleberry and Sword Ferns in early stages of growth. 

    

   

Whychus Creek Trail near Sisters, OR, October 2018. This 2017 lightning caused fire burned about 8,000 of Juniper and Pine trees west of town and near the creek. Many mature Greenleaf Manzanita (Arctostaphylos patula) bushes can be seen here, dead as a door nail. The good news is that the ground in this area is covered with tiny, new growth manzanita plants.

 

   

      

Canyon Creek Meadows trail near Three-Fingered-Jack, July 2016. This area is part of the huge 2003 "B & B complex" fire that burned over 90,000 acres in the central and eastern slopes of the Cascade mountains. In these photos we see plenty of conifers coming up from seeds after 13 years. Some of these new conifers were over six feet tall. In addition, with the increased amount of sunlight reaching the ground, the understory is now bursting with native ferns and wildflowers. Because most of this area is the Mt. Jefferson Wilderness, no trees are planted by humans.

  

Land managers have limited budgets for controlling fires, let alone performing preventive measures such as fuel removal and prescribed burns. The long term outlook regarding western states wildfire intensity and frequency is a complicated topic, with political overtones. We know the historical cycles of natural wildfires are changing here in the west due to fuel buildup, fire suppression, and climate change. Our national and state land managers need the tools and funding to weather the challenges ahead.

For additional reading, this book has some updated data and views on the broader topic of wildfire planning and management. Land on Fire: the New Reality of Wildfire in the West by Gary Ferguson.