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You are here >1Up Info > Wildlife, Animals, and Plants > Plant Species > Shrub > Species: Artemisia frigida | Fringed Sagebrush
 

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FIRE EFFECTS

SPECIES: Artemisia frigida | Fringed Sagebrush
IMMEDIATE FIRE EFFECT ON PLANT : Limited evidence suggests that specific fire effects may vary according to fire intensity and severity or season of burn. Ecotypic differences may also exist. Fringed sagebrush may be killed or seriously damaged by fire when aboveground foliage is consumed [4]. In southern British Columbia, fringed sagebrush growing in big sagebrush stands was killed when these stands were burned prior to spring greenup. In some locations, individual plants can survive even when aboveground vegetation is removed. Sprouting has been reported in southern British Columbia, east-central Alberta, and elsewhere [1,13]. Effects of fire are minimized where fringed sagebrush sprouts readily. DISCUSSION AND QUALIFICATION OF FIRE EFFECT : NO-ENTRY PLANT RESPONSE TO FIRE : The response of fringed sagebrush to fire is highly variable. Community composition, site characteristics, prior grazing history, fire intensity, and timing of burn influence response. Little is known about the time required for fringed sagebrush to reoccupy a site. Fringed sagebrush typically reestablishes a burned site either from on-site surviving seed stored in the soil or seed dispersed from off-site. Plants grown from seed may require up to 3 years to reach sexual maturity on particularly harsh sites. Specific recovery time from seed following fire in fringed sagebrush communities has not been documented. Under some circumstances, fringed sagebrush can regenerate vegetatively and quickly reoccupy a site [1,13]. Stump sprouting or suckering has been observed in British Columbia and in Alberta [1,13]. Wright and others [88] describe fringed sagebrush as a "weak sprouter." Sprouting is probably much more likely following burns of low intensity and severity. General trends following fire in a particular season have been difficult to discern, indicating that other factors must also be considered when projecting the fire response of fringed sagebrush. Dix [25] reported an increased frequency of fringed sagebrush after summer fires in western North Dakota grasslands, whereas Mitchell [50] reported decreases after a July fire in a western Montana grassland. Decreases in frequency or cover were noted following spring and fall fires in North Dakota and Canada [5,25] and after a spring fire in western Montana [2]. Wright and Bailey [79] reported that fringed sagebrush is generally reduced by spring fires in mixed-grass prairies in the northern Great Plains. However, Anderson and Bailey [1] observed increases in fringed sagebrush following annual early spring fires of low intensity in east-central Alberta. Increases in both the density and biomass of fringed sagebrush were noted after a spring fire in Wind Cave National Park, South Dakota [27]. Other researchers in the northern Great Plains report little change in fringed sagebrush cover after fire [41]. Clearly, more research is needed to fully document the response of fringed sagebrush to fire and to account for the different responses noted. DISCUSSION AND QUALIFICATION OF PLANT RESPONSE : Season of burn, fire intensity, site characteristics, plant associations, and geographic and climatic factors all influence the way in which fringed sagebrush responds to fire. Both increases and decreases in fringed sagebrush cover or frequency has been noted after spring and summer fires. The following research results demonstrate the variable response of fringed sagebrush to fire (Study locations, general habitat, and fire intensity are given when such information was noted): - western North Dakota grasslands [25] frequency index values summer burn fall burn spring burn unburned burned unburned burned unburned burned 15 25 17 7 42 10 ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - western Montana grasslands - spring burn 1977 [2] average % cover on burned and unburned stands autumn 1977 spring 1978 summer 1978 unburned burned unburned burned unburned burned 0.1 + 0.2 0.1 0.5 0.1 -------------------------------------------------------------------------- - east-central Alberta - aspen parkland - low intensity spring burn [1] frequency (%) canopy cover (%) unburned burned unburned burned 3 7 0.2 0.3 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- - British Columbia - mountain rangelands (% cover fringed sagebrush) [65] burned subalpine unburned subalpine spruce-willow alpine slopes clearings birch 3 0 0 0 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Wind Cave National Park, South Dakota - grasslands - spring burn [27] ground cover (%) - control 1981 burn 1980 1981 1982 1983 1980 1981 1982 1983 site1 1.8 2.5 4.5 5.3 2.8 1.8 2.2 7.6 site2 1.1 1.1 3.0 5.3 1.1 0.3 0.3 0.4 frequency (%) - site1 27.4 28.2 21.4 37.3 30.6 21.0 21.4 53.2 site2 18.3 12.7 10.3 21.4 16.3 5.6 3.2 3.2 density (avg. # of stems per quadrat) biomass (grams) control 1981 burn density biomass density biomass 1982 1983 1982 1983 1982 1983 1982 1983 site1 1.5 2.2 3.80 3.28 1.1 2.4 2.98 3.00 site2 0.7 0.9 2.79 2.06 0.1 0.1 0.32 0.12 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- western Montana -grasslands [50] burned area unburned area cover frequency cover frequency 1st year 0.4 3 4.2 33 FIRE MANAGEMENT CONSIDERATIONS : NO-ENTRY

Related categories for Species: Artemisia frigida | Fringed Sagebrush

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Information Courtesy: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fire Sciences Laboratory. Fire Effects Information System

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