FIRE EFFECTS
SPECIES: Cercocarpus ledifolius | Curlleaf Mountain-Mahogany 



IMMEDIATE FIRE EFFECT ON PLANT : 
Fire usually kills curlleaf mountain-mahogany.  A wildfire occurred at
Moose Creek in the Salmon National Forest, Idaho, in August of 1979.
Curlleaf mountain-mahogany plants 40 to 80 years old growing on gentle
to moderate slopes near the origin of the fire (which burned with
"considerable" severity) were mostly killed.  Only lightly seared
curlleaf mountain-mahogany survived.  Intense heat alone may cause
mortality in curlleaf mountain-mahogany by searing green growth.
Mortality of curlleaf mountain-mahogany was determined in postfire year
1 [8]:

			        # tagged	# alive	        # sprouting

completely charred, 
crown burned		            11		    0		      0

totally seared, 
crown partially burned 	             9		    0		      0

totally seared, 
crown unburned  	            11		    1		      0

partially seared, 
crown and trunk unburned             9		    1		      0


DISCUSSION AND QUALIFICATION OF FIRE EFFECT : 
NO-ENTRY


PLANT RESPONSE TO FIRE : 
Curlleaf mountain-mahogany seedlings establish after fire, although
establishment may be slow.  A curlleaf mountain-mahogany stand near
MacKay, Idaho, had burned around 1900.  In 1968, it contained plants
ranging from 8 to 54 years of age [47].  A stand that burned in 1965
showed no signs of regeneration by 1968.  However, Collins [8] described
excellent seedling emergence in postfire year 1 of a 1979 wildfire in
the Salmon National Forest, possibly due to an unusually wet growing
season.


DISCUSSION AND QUALIFICATION OF PLANT RESPONSE : 



FIRE MANAGEMENT CONSIDERATIONS : 
In Montana prescribed fire can improve curlleaf mountain-mahogany forage
in seral stands by killing conifers and promoting conditions conducive
to seedling establishment.  In most cases a fall prescribed fire of
several hundred acres is recommended [18].  However, burning is not
recommended for all curlleaf mountain-mahogany communities.  Young
vigorous stands, such as those that have regenerated since 1920, stands
surrounded by volatile fuels such as sagebrush, and stands where
curlleaf mountain-mahogany distribution is scattered (density of 0.5
plant per acre or less) are not candidates for prescribed burning to
improve forage production [18].

Fuel loadings for limber pine/curlleaf mountain-mahogany,
Douglas-fir/curlleaf mountain-mahogany, and mixed conifer communities in
eastern Idaho and western Wyoming are given [4].  A general fire
prescription for curlleaf mountain-mahogany range types in the Northwest
is described [38,39].

Related categories for Species: Cercocarpus ledifolius | Curlleaf Mountain-Mahogany