FIRE ECOLOGY
SPECIES: Chrysolepis sempervirens | Bush Chinquapin 



FIRE ECOLOGY OR ADAPTATIONS : 
Bush chinquapin survives fire by sprouting from the roots, root crown,
and stump when aboveground portions of the plant have burned
[9,30,32,40].  Because bush chinquapin occurs in many plant communities,
natural fire regimes vary.  Thickets growing in rock outcrops escape
fire for long periods of time [12].  Plants in the understory of
coniferous forests historically burned often.  Mixed coniferous,
sequoia, ponderosa pine (Pinus ponderosa), and Jeffrey pine forests
burned at 2- to 8-year intervals prior to fire suppression [4].
Frequent fire in these forests favors understories of bush chinquapin
over understories of coniferous seedlings [23].  High-elevation thickets
of bush chinquapin in the whitebark pine (Pinus albicaulis) cover type
typically escape burning for 50 to 300 years [1].


POSTFIRE REGENERATION STRATEGY : 
   Small shrub, adventitious-bud root crown
   Geophyte, growing points deep in soil

Related categories for Species: Chrysolepis sempervirens | Bush Chinquapin