Document


Title

Soil nutrients and microbial activity after early and late season prescribed burns in a Sierra Nevada mixed conifer forest
Document Type: Journal Article
Author(s): Sarah T. Hamman; Ingrid C. Burke; Eric E. Knapp
Publication Year: 2008

Cataloging Information

Keyword(s):
  • nitrogen mineralization
  • Sierra Nevada
  • soil enzymes
  • soil respiration rates
  • soils
Region(s):
Record Maintained By:
Record Last Modified: April 21, 2016
FRAMES Record Number: 7174

Description

Restoring the natural fire regime to forested systems that have experienced fire exclusion throughout the past century can be a challenge due to the heavy fuel loading conditions. Fire is being re-introduced to mixed conifer forests in the Sierra Nevada through both early season and late season prescribed burns, even though most fires historically occurred in the late season. We assessed the impact of early and late season prescribed fires on soil biogeochemical and microbiological parameters that are important for ecosystem recovery. We found that the late season burns had more dramatic short-term effects on soil abiotic conditions (temperature, moisture and pH), mineral soil carbon levels, total inorganic nitrogen, and microbial activity than the early season burns, relative to unburned sites, suggesting a higher severity burn. However, the total soil nitrogen pools and fluxes and soil respiration rates were not differentially impacted by burn season. These burn season effects suggest that soil variables may be regulated more strongly by fire severity than by the season in which the prescribed fire is conducted.

Online Link(s):
Link to this document (422 KB; full text; pdf)
Citation:
Hamman, Sarah T.; Burke, Ingrid C.; and Knapp, Eric E. 2008. Soil nutrients and microbial activity after early and late season prescribed burns in a Sierra Nevada mixed conifer forest. Forest Ecology and Management 256(3):367-374.