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Fire Regimes and Tree Growth in Low Rainfall Jarrah Forest of South-west Australia

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Abstract

Regular fuel reduction burning is an important management strategy for reducing the scale and intensity of wildfires in south-west Australian native forests, but the long term effects of this on tree and stand growth are not well understood. Five fire treatments, including application of frequent and infrequent low intensity burns, and 25 years of fire exclusion, were applied to small (4 ha) experimental plots in a low rainfall mixed jarrah (Eucalyptus marginata) and marri (Corymbia calophylla) forest to investigate the effects of these treatments on tree stem diameter growth, stand basal area increment and tree mortality. Mean tree stem growth measured over 20 years was lowest in the long unburnt treatment compared with the burn treatments, although surface soil nutrient levels were generally higher in the unburnt treatment, suggesting these sites may be moisture limited. There was no clear pattern of the effects of the burn treatments, including the number of fires and the interval between fires, on tree stem growth, stand basal area increment, crown health or mortality. These factors were strongly influenced by dominance condition, with dominant and co-dominant trees growing most and suppressed trees growing least and experiencing the highest mortality levels. There was no evidence of deteriorating tree or stand health that could be attributed to either regular low intensity burning or to a long period (25 years) of fire exclusion.

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Acknowledgments

We thank Bob Smith and Glenda Lindsay for assistance in the field, Amanda Mellican for statistical advice and Vic Jurskis, Jack Bradshaw and Martin Raynor for helpful comments on an earlier draft. One of the authors, Alex Robinson, passed away prior to the completion of this study, so we dedicate this article to his memory.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Environment and Conservation, Locked Bag 104, Bentley Delivery Centre, Kensington, WA, 6983, Australia

    Neil Burrows

  2. Department of Environment and Conservation, Brain Street, Manjimup, WA, 6258, Australia

    Bruce Ward & Alex Robinson

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  1. Neil Burrows
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  2. Bruce Ward
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  3. Alex Robinson
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Correspondence to Neil Burrows.

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Burrows, N., Ward, B. & Robinson, A. Fire Regimes and Tree Growth in Low Rainfall Jarrah Forest of South-west Australia. Environmental Management 45, 1332–1343 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00267-010-9490-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00267-010-9490-6

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