Restoring fire to mixed conifer forests in the Northern Cascades

Abstract

Many of the ponderosa pine (Pinus ponderosa) mixed conifer stands in the Methow Valley of north-central Washington have developed understories of Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga rnenziesii) as a result of fire exclusion. Most of the forest floor has not yet become cluttered with dead woody fuel. Instead, the live biomass has increased and created more ladder fuels (branches near enough to the ground to carry a surface into the crowns). Consequently, crown fires can be initiated by fires of lower intensity. There is an increase in dwarf mistletoe (Arceuthobiurn spp.), root rot, and other associated pathogens. Our challenge as land managers on the Okanogan National Forest is to reduce the tree biomass and stems per acre and adjust species composition to more historic levels while restoring fire to these stands.

Parent Publication

• The use of fire in forest restoration

Citation

Leuschen, T. J. 1996. Restoring fire to mixed conifer forests in the Northern Cascades. In: Hardy, Colin C.; Arno, Stephen F., eds. The use of fire in forest restoration. Gen. Tech. Rep. INT-GTR-341. Ogden, UT: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Intermountain Research Station. p. 77.