Prescribed Fire

Prescribed Fire. . , For thousands of years, fire was an important component of the health of natural areas including prairies, oak savannah, wetlands and forests. Fires were started by lightning and were also set by Native Americans as a planned landscape management effort. , Today, forest management professionals use what is called Prescribed Fire in an attempt to continue this important component of natural landscape management effort. , A prescribed fire is a carefully planned and controlled fire conducted to manage natural areas such as prairie, oak savannah, wetlands, and fire-dependent forest. A prescribed fire is conducted to mimic the fires that contributed to the health of Minnesota's landscapes over millennia. A prescription must be developed to assure that fire or smoke will not adversely affect surrounding homes, businesses, travel routes, recreation area and wildlife habitat. , Prescribed fire benefits prairies and oak savannah by removing brushy growth. Prairie plants grow better when brush is removed and built-up fuel is reduced. Fire also benefits forests in several important ways. Fire reduces fuel loads, lessening the chances for larger, catastrophic fires. Controlled fire helps rejuvenate forest soils by returning nutrients. Prescribed fire improves wildlife habitat by facilitating more open spaces, stimulating the growth of nutritious food on the forest floor, and encouraging new growth of fire dependent plant species. Prescribed fire also helps retard the growth of non-native plant species that are not adapted to a fire-dependent ecosystem. , Shortly after a prescribed burn, you can notice a wonderful rejuvenation of the prairie or forest landscape where this management tool has been utilized.