FIRE EFFECTS
SPECIES: Ribes velutinum | Desert Gooseberry 



IMMEDIATE FIRE EFFECT ON PLANT : 
Fire top-kills or kills desert gooseberry.

In White Pine County, Nevada, desert gooseberry was present in trace
amounts before prescribed burning in the spring, but it was not present
after burning in postfire years 1 and 2.  Fire conditions were not
described [27].


DISCUSSION AND QUALIFICATION OF FIRE EFFECT : 
NO-ENTRY


PLANT RESPONSE TO FIRE : 
Desert gooseberry sprouts from the root crown after low- to
moderate-severity fire and seedlings may establish after fire.

Near Reno, Nevada, desert gooseberry has been described as a "vigorous"
sprouter [31].  A summer wildfire burned a big sagebrush (Artemisia
tridentata)/Thurber needlegrass (Stipa thurberiana) community.  In
postfire year 1 desert gooseberry occurred at a density of 0.06 to 0.08
plants per square meter; "virtually all" plants survived the fire and
sprouted.  No desert gooseberry seedlings established the first year
[31].  In Nevada and California, desert gooseberry occurred on 1- to
60-year old burned sites.  The origin of desert gooseberry (seedlings
or sprouts) on these sites was not specifically mentioned but the
authors described desert gooseberry as a "root-sprouting shrub" [10].

At Lava Beds National Monument, a July 1973 wildfire burned through a
bunchgrass community containing a small island of trees and shrubs,
including desert gooseberry.  In 1977, a July prescribed fire was
conducted in a similar community that also included desert gooseberry.
The wildfire followed a month with no rain and low humidity.  The
prescribed fire followed a month with high rainfall (2.04 inches [51
mm]).  Fire conditions for both fires were as follows [24]:

                          1973 wildfire         1977 prescribed fire

daytime high temp
  degrees Fahrenheit         82.4                         80.6 
  degrees Celsius            28.0                         27

percent humidity             20                           18             

percent moisture content 
of dead wood 0.25-1 inch
(0.62-2.54 cm)                3                            6 

wind speed
  mi/h                       9-12                       0.6-7.2
  km/h                      15-20                         1-12

Fire severities were not described.  In postfire year 1, average desert
gooseberry frequency was less than 1 percent for all treatements
(wildfire, prescribed burn, and controls).  The cover, average height,
and percent of dead branches in individual desert gooseberry crowns were
slightly less on the wildfire site in postfire year 1 than on adjacent,
unburned sites.  Average values for desert gooseberry follow; standard
deviations are in parentheses:

                        Percent cover       Height        Percent dead 
                                             (cm)            crown

1973 wildfire             0.2 (0.6)       81.3 (19.3)      19.3 (16.8)
unburned control          0.4 (1.1)      118.8 (26.6)       5.5 (38.5)

1977 prescribed fire      0.1 (0.8)       75.0 (21.2)      89.5 (13.4)


DISCUSSION AND QUALIFICATION OF PLANT RESPONSE : 
NO-ENTRY


FIRE MANAGEMENT CONSIDERATIONS : 
At Silver Knoll, north of Reno, Nevada, mounds are formed at the base of
desert gooseberry by the burrowing activity of rodents.  The mounds may
protect the sprouting root crowns of desert gooseberry, making them
difficult to reduce with fire.  One year after a fire, desert gooseberry
plants were sprouting in whorls from burned stems even though they had
been completely top-killed by fire [32].

In Nevada and California, desert gooseberry occurred on 1- to 60-year
old burned and unburned sites.  Eight out of 21 burns had been seeded
with grasses, including standard crested wheatgrass (Agropyron
desertorum), intermediate wheatgrass (Thinopyrum intermedium), and
smooth brome (Bromus ineris).  Desert gooseberry showed no preference
for seeded or nonseeded sites [10].

Related categories for Species: Ribes velutinum | Desert Gooseberry