On this site, this vegetation community ranges from an open overstory to a nearly closed canopy. Fire helps to establish and maintain a more open canopy, but, on this site, some locations with a frequent fire return interval maintain a nearly closed canopy of mixed pine and oak. This vegetation community on this site is exceptionally rare today, due mostly to landuse conversion to agriculture.
(Peat and Allard, 1993; Schafale and Weakley, 1990)
Resilience management
This community is maintained by fires on a return interval of 3 to 5 years. Fires at this return interval maintain both vegetation and fuels so that the overall vegetation community is well adapted to the resulting fire intensity. Longleaf pine is well adapted to frequent low intensity surface fires, and the oak species common on this site are capable of withstanding low intensity fire.
On this site, this vegetation community ranges from an open overstory to a nearly closed canopy. This community often occurs as a transition between frequently burned sandhills and fire intolerant upland hardwoods. This site tends to occur in locations that are partially sheltered from fire, but fire continues to play a role on this site, and the hardwoods common on this site are more tolerant of fire than other hardwoods. Disturbed areas tend to have an increased prominence of pines.
(FNAI, 2010; Peat and Allard, 1993; Schafale and Weakley, 1990)
Restoration efforts might include revegetation and reintroduction of periodic fire. There is increased interest in restoration of longleaf pine and it's associated vegetation communities including the application of prescribed and controlled fire. However, it is unclear whether or not the full historical range of fire behavior and fire seasonality can be restored on the modern landscape, and the limited scope of modern fire application may impact full restoration to historical conditions.
Restoration of vegetation community and application of managed fire.
Model keys
Briefcase
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The Ecosystem Dynamics Interpretive Tool is an information system framework developed by the USDA-ARS Jornada Experimental Range, USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service, and New Mexico State University.
) icon wherever it occurs. Drag and drop items to reorder. Cookies are used to store briefcase items between browsing sessions. Because of this, the number of items that can be added to your briefcase is limited, and briefcase items added on one device and browser cannot be accessed from another device or browser. Users who do not wish to place cookies on their devices should not use the briefcase tool. Briefcase cookies serve no other purpose than described here and are deleted whenever browsing history is cleared.
