Damaging Hardwood Crop Trees with Fire

Foresters have long recognized that wildfire is a major cause of butt rot in hardwoods. Much of this information on bole damage comes from early studies of wildfires (Abell 1932; Nelson and others 1933); less information is available concerning the relationship between prescribed fire and stem damage. Wendel and Smith (1986) found that a strip-head fire in the spring in an oak-hickory stand in West Virginia caused a decline in overstory vigor and resulted in death of many trees during the 5 years after burning. However, a low-intensity winter fire in a mixed hardwood stand in the southern Appalachians resulted in little or no cambium damage to large crop trees (Sanders and others 1987). The potential for damage to boles of thin-barked hardwoods by moderate- to high-intensity fires is evident in the many fire-scarred trees throughout Appalachian forests. Although methods have been developed to predict fire-induced mortality of large trees based on stem size and extent of fire damage (Loomis 1973), research is needed to determine if and how prescribed fire can be used without excessive damage to stems of large valuable crop trees in mature hardwood stands. (Van Lear and Watt, 1993)