United States

Department of

Agriculture

c”‘II “W

Ll

U&j n * Forest Service Research Note

Southern Research SO-383

Station December 1995

Responses of Understory Vegetation on Highly Erosive

Louisiana Soils to Prescribed Burning in May

James D. Haywood,Alton Martin, Jr., and John C. Novosad

SUMMARY

Prescribed burning is necessary to restore the herbaceous plant community normally associated with the

fire-dependent longleaf pine, Pinus palustris Mill., ecosystem. Usually these burns are done in the winter

months. However, burning during the early growing season may allow herbaceous plants to recover better than

when burning is conducted during the winter months. It

was hoped that the additional herbaceous growth would

decrease soil movement, a problem on highly erodible

hilltop glades of Kisatchie soil (Typic Hapludalfs). The

effects of a May burn on soil movement and vegetation

growing on two hilltop glades were monitored through

one growing season. A prescribed burn on May 24,1994,

reduced vegetation and litter cover on the soil surface

and the number of woody plants in the understory. This

treatment also adversely affected the richness of woody

plants within the herbaceous layer and initially reduced

the herbaceous standing crop compared to preburn conditions. Soil movement doubled after the May burn; but

in another study, a November burn had a similar effect

on soil losses. Because the May burn adversely affected

woody plants while maintaining the herbaceous plant

community, this treatment may be preferable to winter

burning on steep, highly erodible Kisatchie soils.

INTRODUCTION

The Kisatchie soil series (fine;montmorillonitic, thermic, Typic Hapludalfs) has the highest erosion potential

of any series on the 243,000-ha (600,000-acre) USDA

Forest Service, Kisatchie National Forest. The Kisatchie

series occurs on approximately 11,400 ha (28,200 acres)

of National Forest land in Louisiana, with about 12 percent on slopes of less than 5 percent, 65 percent on

slopes of 5 to 40 percent, and 23 percent in gullies. This

series usually has thin surface horizons, high acidity, low

natural fertility, and relatively sparse vegetation, with

longleaf pine, Pinus palusfris Mill., as the dominant forest type.

Prescribed burning has been restricted on these soils

for over 12 years because of reported increases in soil

erosion after winter burns (Thill and Bellemore 1986).

The exclusion of fire can reduce herbaceous plant productivity partly because of an accumulation of litter and

development of understory woody vegetation (Haywood

and Thill 1995). On hilltop glades of Kisatchie soil, only a

minimum of litter accumulation occurs because there is

only sparse overstory cover, but understory woody growth

can still exclude herbaceous plants.

The effects of fire exclusion on ground cover and vegetation concern forest managers who are attempting to

sustain and restore the floristically rich herbaceous plant

community normally associated with the fire-dependent

longleaf pine ecosystem. The use of fire in restoring this

diverse plant community must be balanced with the need

to control soil losses.

Growing-season burning may cause less soil loss than

winter burning. Growing-season burns are normally followed by rapid recovery of vegetation, and an active root

system may retain nutrients flushed into the mineral soil

following burning.

To examine the effects of growing-season burning on

Kisatchie soils, two steep, highly erodible hilltop glades

and the surrounding forested areas were burned on May

24, 1994. Through the growing season, we monitored

vegetation, ground cover, and herbaceous standing crops

on the two burned glades. Soil movement was also monitored on the two burned glades and on two unburned

glades nearby.

Southern Research Station, U.S. Department of Agrlcuiture, Forest Service,

P.O. Box 2660, Asheville, NC 28802.
METHODS

Study Areas

Two highly eroded hilltop glades were selected on the

USDA Forest Service, Kisatchie National Forest,

Kisatchie Ranger District in west-central Louisiana to be

control-burned. Both glades were sparsely stocked with

longleaf pine seedlings and saplings and some stunted

loblolly pines, t? taeda L.The primary shrub species were

scattered individual yaupon, Hex vomitoria Ait., and blueberries, Vaccinium spp.

Vegetation Measurements

On each of the two glades burned in May 1994, the

vegetation was measured on six 30-m (1 00-ft) permanent transects using line intercept methods (Canfield

1941). The transects, which were selected to represent

different cover and slope conditions on the two glades,

were measured in late April (preburn) and July and October (postburn) 1994. No transects for measuring vegetation were established on unburned glades.

Variables of interest included: (1) soil cover estimates

for bare ground, rock, litter, and vegetation, (2) percentages of the absolute frequency of herbaceous and small

woody vegetation, (3) fall flowering, (4) understory woody

plant cover, and (5) herbaceous standing crop. On each

measurement date, the soil cover estimates were made

within a e-cm-diameter (0.75inch-diameter) circular loop

(Parker and Harris 1959) at 100 evenly spaced points

along a marked line stretched the length of each transect.

These cover estimates were made to the nearest 5-percent increment; i.e., 0, 5, 10, . . .,lOO percent. Plants

within the loop were tallied and used to compute botanical composition as a percentage of the absolute frequency. On the fall measurement date, flowering

(seedhead formation) was noted as being present or

absent for the bluestem grasses, Schizachyrium spp. and

Andropogon spp., within each loop.

On each measurement date, woody plants were identified, and ground cover to a height of 1.5 m (5 ft) was

determined, over the length of each transect. The dry

weight of the herbaceous standing crop was estimated

by clipping seven 0.22-m* (2.4-ff) plots within 2 m (6.6 ft)

of each transect, for a total of 84 plots on the two glades

burned in May 1994.

Soil Movement

Previous monitoring showed that dormant-season

burning of vegetation on Kisatchie soils doubled erosion

losses compared to Kisatchie soils on which vegetation

had not been burned (Thill and Bellemore 1986). For this

reason, the current forest plan for the Kisatchie National

Forest requires supervisory staff approval before vegetation on Kisatchie soils can be burned, and vegetation

on severely eroded Kisatchie soils is normally excluded

from burning.

Growing-season burning may result in less soil movement than dormant-season burning; therefore, we wanted

to determine the amount of soil movement that occurs

following growing-season burning on Kisatchie soils.

Soil movement was monitored on the two hilltop glades

that were prescribed burned in May 1994 and on two

nearby glades that were not burned. Stakes for monitoring soil movement were placed at representative locations on the glades 2 months before burning. These.

locations included gullies and side slopes. The gullies

and side slopes were under two levels of overstory basal

area: (1) 0 to 9.2 m*/ha (0 to 40 ft*/acre) and (2) over 9.2

m*/ha (40 ft*/acre).

Soil movement was measured by placing a mark on

each stake where the soil surface touched the stake.The

changes in soil level were measured monthly from April

through December 1994 to determine soil accumulation

or loss to the nearest 0.25 cm (0.1 in).

Prescribed Burning

The two hilltop glades were burned by personnel at

the Kisatchie National Forest using standard firing methods on May 24, 1994. The initial back and flanking fires

were set on the northeast side of the area at 1O:OO a.m.;

relative humidity was 55 percent, air temperature was

28 “C (82 OF), and wind speeds were 5 km/h (3 mi/h)

from the south.The last weather data were taken at 4:30

p.m.; relative humidity was 41 percent, air temperature

was 31 “C (87 OF), and wind speeds were 10 km/h (6 mi/h).

Flame lengths were about 61 cm (2 ft).The mixing height

was 610 m (2,000 ft), with southern transport winds of

11 km/h (7 mi/h).

Based on field observations, some litter was left after

burning, 80 percent of the herbaceous fine fuels were

consumed, and about 80 percent of the understory trees

and shrubs were controlled. None of the longleaf and

loblolly pine trees in the overstory suffered crown scorch

or stem damage.

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

Ground Cover

The changes in percentages of ground litter between

April (preburn) and July (postburn) supported field obJames D. Haywood is a silviculturtst and Alton Martin is a biological technician, both with the U.S. Department of Agrkuiture, Forest Service, Southern

Research Station; John C. Novosad is a soil scientist with the Forest Service, Kisatchie National Forest; all are located at the Alexandria Forastry

Center, Pineville, LA 71360.

2
.

servations made during the prescribed burns (table 1).

Consumption of living and dead fuels exposed more rock

and bare soil on both burned glades. However, the litter

layer and understory vegetation were not completely

destroyed on either burned glade. Litter cover decreased

on the north glade from 73 percent in April to 63 percent

in July and on the south glade from 83 percent in April to

63 percent in July. There was a greater reduction in litter

on the south glade than on the north glade because there

were more fine fuels or litter on the south glade to carry

the fire.

Vegetation cover decreased from 20 percent in April

to 12 percent in July on the north glade and from 19

percent in April to 17 percent in July on the south glade

(table 1). Vegetation recovered through the remainder of

the growing season, and by October 31, 1994, vegetation covered 18 percent of the soil surface on both glades.

Understory Woody Plants

In April 1994, the principal understory woody plants

on the two burned glades were yaupon and K corymbosum L. (also known as V: virgatum Chapm. and V: elliottii

Chapm.) (table 2). The north glade had a richer understory woody plant community, with a total of 10 species;

the south glade had a total of 6 species.

Prescribed burning reduced the percentage of woody

plant cover on both glades (table 2). Total line-intercept

coverage on the north glade was 33 percent in April before burning and 2 percent in July after burning, and on

the south glade coverage was 17 percent in April and 1

percent in July. Some of the understory woody plants

had begun to reestablish in the understory by the end of

the growing season. On October 31, woody plant cover

was 3 percent on the north glade and 4 percent on the

south glade. At the end of the growing season, woody

species present in the understory of the north glade were

yaupon; tree sparkleberry, V: arboreum Marsh.; longleaf

pine; and loblolly pine; species present on the south glade

were yaupon, tree sparkleberry, and V: corymbosum.

Herbaceous Standing Crop

The amount of herbaceous plant biomass was initially

reduced by prescribed burning. The ovendried weight of

the herbaceous standing crop on the two glades averaged 564 kg/ha (504 lb/acre) in April before burning and

241 kg/ha (215 lb/acre) in July after burning (table 3).

However, vegetation recovered from the fires during the

remainder of the growing season. By October 31, the

herbaceous standing crop averaged 547 kg/ha (488 lb/

acre) on the two burned glades.

Botanical Composition

The frequency of occurrence of the grasses was largely

unaffected by prescribed burning. As a yearly average,

grasses were found at 28 percent of the sampling points

on the north glade and at 52 percent of the sampling

points on the south glade (table 4). Pinehill bluestem,

Schizachyrium scoparium var. divergens (Hack.) Gould,

was the most common plant on both glades, being found

at 26 percent of the sampling points as a yearly average

for both glades. Also, slender bluestem, S. fenerum Nees,

was found at 4 percent of the sampling points across

both glades. The other bluestems, Andropogon spp.;

purple lovegrass, Eragrostis spectabilis (Pursh) Steud.;

and bearded skeletongrass, Gymnopogon ambiguus

(Michx.) BSP., continued to develop on both glades

throughout 1994. The low panicums, Dicanthelium spp.,

decreased in occurrence. However, based on past experience, these patterns of occurrence would have probably resulted had the glades not been burned.

The grasslike plants continued to develop on both

glades throughout 1994 (table 4). The beakrushes,

Rhynchospora spp., and the razorsedges, Scleria spp.,

were more common on the south glade than on the north

glade.

The other herbs decreased in frequency of occurrence

between April and October 1994 (table 4). For both

glades, the other herbs were found at 26 percent of the

Table 1 .- Percentages of rock, bare ground, litter, and p/ant cover on two hilltop glades of Kisatchie

soil before and after the prescribed burn on May 24, 1994

Sampling dates

in 1994

North hilltop glade South hilltop glade

Rock Soil Litter Vegetation Rock Soil Litter Vegetation

Preburn

April 28

________________________________________----- ¢ ____________________--------------------------

16.4 10.1 73.4 19.9 10.8 5.5 83.2 19.3

Postburn

July 13 21.2 15.1 63.1 11.9 15.0 21.6 63.4 16.9

October 3 1 22.1 13.5 64.3 17.8 16.2 12.5 71.3 18.3

3
Table 2.- Line-intercept coverage (percent) of principal understory woody plants on two hilltop glades

of Kisatchie soil before and after the prescribed burn on May 24, 1994’

Taxa

. North hilltop gladet South hilltop gladet

April July October April July October

llex vomitoria

Yaupon 17.5

Myrica cerifera

Southern bayberry 1.3

Vaccinium arboreum

Tree sparkleberry 2.8

Vaccinium stamineum

Common deerberry -

Vaccinium corymbosum, or

\/: virgatum, rabbiteye;

and V elliottii, Elliott

blueberries 7.8

Quercus stellata

Post oak 0.3

Quercus falcata

Southern red oak 0.2

Quercus marilandica

Blackjack oak 0.7

Nyssa sytvatica

Blackgum 0.7

Pinus palustris

Longleaf pine 0.3

Pinus taeda

Loblolly pine 1.5

Total 32.9

______________________________________ percent ________________________________________

0 1.5

0 0

0 0.2

0 0

0 0

0 0

0 0

0 0

0.2 0.2

1.5 1.5

1.7 3.4

8.3

-

1.5

0.5

8.2

0.2

-

-

0.3

-

-

17.0

0

-

0.5

0

0

0

-

-

0

-

-

0.5

2.2

-

0.5

0

1.5

0

-

-

0

-

-

4.2

*Inventories were made before (April 28) and after (July 13 and October 31) the burn.

tAbsence of data (percent) for some species means that these species were not present in April 1994.

Table 3.- Herbaceous standing crop (ovendried weight) on two hilltop glades of Kisatchie soil before

and after the prescribed burn on May 24, 1994

Sampling dates in 1994

Preburn

April 28

North hilltop glade South hilltop glade Means

__________________________________ kg/ha @/acre) __________________________________

384 (343) 743 (883) 564 (504)

Postburn

July 13 185 (147) 318 (284) 241 (215)

October 3 1 459 (410) 836 (568) 547 (488)
sampling points in April before burning and at 22 per- nutiallii L.C. Anderson; gayfeathers, Liatris spp.; and ascent of the sampling points in October after burning. ters, Asferspp. (table 4). Pencilflower, Stylosanthes biflora

However, based on past experience, this reduction in (L.) BSP., and Virginia tephrosia, Tephrosia virginiana (L.)

overall occurrence would probably have occurred even Pers., were common legumes on both glades.

if the glades had not been burned. Four species noticeably declined on both gladesAmong the other herbs, the most common compos- sticky sundew, Drosera brevifolia Pursh; braken fern,

ites on both glades were rayless goldenrod, Bigelowia Pteridium aquihnum var. pseudocaudaturn (Clute) Heller;

Table 4.- Frequency of occurrence (percent) of vegetation on two hilltop glades of Kisatchie soil

before and after the prescribed burn on May 24, 1994*

North hilltop gladet South hilltop gladet

Taxa April July October April July October

______________________________________ percent ________________________________________

Grasses

Schizachyrium scoparium

var. divergens

Pinehill bluestem

S. tenerum

Slender bluestem

Andropogon spp.

Bluestems present were

A. virginicus, broomsedge;

A. subtenuis,

fineleaf bluestem;

A. ternarius, paintbrush

bluestem; and A. elliottii,

Elliott bluestem

Dicanthelium spp.

Low panicum grasses

Aristida spp.

Mostly A. purpurascens,

Arrowfeather threeawn

Eragrostis spectabilis

Purple lovegrass

Gymnopogon ambiguus

Bearded skeletongrass

Subtotal

Grasslike plants

Rhynchospora spp.

Pinehill beakrushes

Scleria spp.

Razorsedges

Subtotal

Other herbs

Bigelowia nuttallii

Rayless goldenrod

Liatris spp.

Mostly L. pycnostachya,

Kansas gayfeather

Helianthus angustifolius

Swamp sunflower

Heterotheca graminifolia

Grassleaf goldaster

Solidago spp.

Present were S. odora,

fragrant goldenrod;

and S. nitida,

shiny goldenrod

Aster spp.

Mostly A. hemisphericus,

hemisphere aster

19.8 18.2 18.8 33.5 32.7 31.8

2.2 2.0 1.7 6.8 6.5 6.5

0.8 1.1 1.8 0.2 2.5 2.1

5.2 5.7 4.0 13.0 9.7 9.0

0.5 1.3 1.5

0 0.2 0.2

0 0.2 0.2

28.3 28.7 28.2

1.0 0.3 0.5

-

0

54.5

-

0.3

52.0

-

0.2

50.1

0

0.7

0.7

0.2 0.8 0.5 0.7

0.8 3.5 4.0 4.3

1.0 4.3 4.5 5.0

7.8 7.5 2.8 3.3

2.2 2.2

- -

0 0.7

7.3 7.7

2.8 4.5

1.7 1.5

0

2.3

0

0.2

0.2

5.7

1.5

-

0.2

0.2

2.0

0.2

2.8

5.0

6.8

4.3

1.7

0.3

4.5

0.3

3.5

0

3.8

5
Table 4.-Frequency of occurrence (percent) of vegetation on two hilltop glades of Kisatchie soil

before and aher the prescribed burn on May 24, 1994 * (continued)

Taxa

North hilltop glade+ South hilltop glade+

April July October April July October

Vernonia texana

Texas ironweed

Stylosanthes biflora

Pencilflower

Tephrosia virginiana

Virginia tephrosia

Aureolaria pectinata

Oakleech combleaf

Drosera brevifolia

Sticky sundew

Hypoxis hirsuta

Common goldaster

Mitchella repens

Partridgeberry

Viola pedata

Birdsfoot violet

Pteridium aquilinum

var. pseudocaudatum

Braken fern

Cladonia dimorphoclada

A lichen

Selaginella spp.

Spikemosses

Subtotal

Shrubs, trees, and vines

llex vomitoria

Yaupon

Myrica cerifera

Southern bayberry

Vaccinium arboreum

Tree sparkleberry

Vaccinium stamineum

Common deerberry

Vaccinium corymbosum,

or V virgatum. rabbiteye;

and V elliottii, Elliott

blueberries

Ascyrum hypercoides

St. Andrewscross

Quercus spp.

Present were Q. stellata,

post oak; Q. falcata,

southern red oak;

and Q. marilandica,

blackjack oak

Nyssa sylvatica

Blackgum

Pinus palustris

Longleaf pine

Pinus taeda

Loblolly pine

Gelsemium sempervirens

Carolina jessamine

Smilax glauca

Cat greenbriar

Subtotal

Total

______________________________________ percent ________________________________________

0 0.2 0

0.7 0.8 1.0

1.2 2.3 1.7

- - -

0.5

0

0.2

0

0

0.2

0.2

0

0

0

0.2

0.2

0.3 0.5 0.5

1.3 1.0 0.3

0.8 1.2 1.0

0.8 0.3 0.3

0.3 0 0

0 0.2 0.3

- - -

0.3 0.2 0.5

2.3 1.7 0.5 2.0 1.7 1.0

4.0 2.2 1.8 2.0 0.8 0.7

0.3 0 0 0.3 0 0

21.5 17.2 18.8 30.7 24.3 25.4

26.0 3.8 15.8

0.3 0.3 0.3

0.5 0.2 0.2

0.3 0 0.3

3.7

-

i

-

2.5 4.7

- -

- -

1.0 0.2 0.2

1.5

0

0.5

0.2

0.3

0

2.0 1.5 2.3

- - -

0.2 0.4 0.7 - - -

- - -

0.2 0 0.2

0.2 0 0.3

2.0 0.3 0.8

0.7 0.7 1.7

31.9 6.4 20.6

62.4 52.5 68.6

0.2

0.2

0

0

- -

0

O\

-

0.5 0 0

0.2 0.8 0.5

7.8 5.0 7.7

97.3 85.8 88.2

‘Inventories were made before (April 28) and after (July 13 and October 31) the burn.

+Absence of data (percent) for some species means that these species were not present in April 1994.

6
a lichen, Cladonia dimorphoclada, no common name;

and the spikemosses, Selaginella spp. Fire-related desiccation may have partly caused the decrease in occurrence of these species, or this might have been a natural

seasonal pattern even without fire.

Soil Movement

One of the largest initial effects of fire on botanical

composition was the reduction in average frequency of

occurrence among the shrubs, trees, and vines (table

4). On the north glade, woody plants were found at 32

percent of the sampling points in April before burning

and at 6 percent of the sampling points in July after burning. The woody vegetation partly recovered during the

remainder of the growing season, being found at 21 percent of the sampling points in October. There were fewer

woody plants on the south glade, so the effect of fire

was less striking.

The amount of soil movement was greater on both

glades following the May burn than on nearby unburned

glades. By December 1994, sheet movement averaged

58.5 Mg/ha (26.1 tons/acre) on the burned glades and

31.3 Mg/ha (14.0 tons/acre) on the unburned glades

(table 5). Soil movement in the gullies averaged 187 Mg/ha

(83.5 tons/acre) on the burned glades and 81.3 Mg/ha

(36.3 tons/acre) on the unburned glades. Although May

burning doubled soil movement rates, Thill and Bellemore

(1986) reported that erosion rates also doubled following a prescribed burn in November on other highly erodible Kisatchie soils.

Because of the decline among the other herbs and

woody vegetation on both glades, there was a lower total frequency of occurrence in October after burning than

in April before burning (table 4). On the north glade, total

frequency of occurrence was 82 percent in April and 69

percent in October. On the south glade, total frequency

of occurrence was 97 percent in April and 88 percent in

October.

Maximum tolerable soil loss is an estimate of the annual soil loss that will permit a sustained level of soil

productivity. Tolerable soil losses for Kisatchie soils over

a go-year rotation are 56 Mg/ha (25 tons/acre), with

losses for a single year not to exceed 9.4 Mg/ha (4.2

tons/acre), as stated in the “Kisatchie National Forest

Final Land Resource and Management Plan.“Therefore,

soil loss is too great on steep, highly erodible glades,

whether burned or not.

Percentages of Bluestem Grasses in Flower CONCLUSIONS

All of the pinehill bluestem; broomsedge, Andropogon Prescribed burning on steep, highly erodible glades of

virginicus L.; fineleaf bluestem, A. subtenuis Nash; paint- Kisatchie soils may be controversial because the need

brush bluestem, A. ternarius Michx.; and Elliott bluestem, to nurture fire-dependent plant communities must be

A. elliottii Chapm., grasses had flowered by November balanced with the need to control soil losses. Prescribed

1994. However, slender bluestem did not flower follow- burning in May resulted in less vegetation and litter cover

ing the May burn, but factors other than the fire might on the soil surface and initially in less herbaceous standhave been the cause. ing crop. By the end of the growing season, herbaceous

Table 5. -Soil movement under different levels of overstory basal area of longleaf pine (P. palustris

Mill.) on two hi//top glades of Kisatchie soil prescribe-burned in May 1994 and on two nearby

unburned glades

Basal areas and

burning status

Average soil movement from April to December

Sheet movement Gully movement

0 to 9.2 m2/ha ( 0 to 4 0 ft2/acre)

Burned

Unburned

Over 9.2 m2/ha (40 ft2/acre)

Burned

Unburned

______________________Mq”ha (tons/acre) ___________________-----

60.0 (26.8) 130.1 ( 58.1)

13.4 ( 8.0) 65.0 ( 29.0)

56.9 (25.4) 243.9 (108.8)

49.1 (21.9) 97.7 ( 43.6)

Averages for both basal areas

Burned

Unburned

58.5 (26.1) 187.0 ( 83.5)

31.3 (14.0) 81.3 ( 38.3)
vegetation had recovered from the fire. Burning reduced

the number of woody plants in the understory, and the

richness of woody plants within the herbaceous layer was

initially reduced by fire. Soil movement doubled after the

May burn, but a November burn in another study (Thill

and Bellemore 1986) had a similar effect on soil movement. Because the May burn adversely impacted woody

plants while maintaining the herbaceous plant community, this fire technique may be better than winter burning of vegetation on highly erodible Kisatchie soils.

LITERATURE CITED

Canfield, R.H. 1941. Application of the line interception

method in sampling range vegetation. Journal of Forestry. 39:388-394.

Haywood, J.D.; Thill, R.E. 1995. Long-term responses of

understory vegetation on a highly erosive Louisiana

soil to fertilization. Res. Note SO-382. New Orleans,

LA: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service,

Southern Forest Experiment Station. 6 p.

Parker, K.W.; Harris, R.W. 1959. The 3-step method for

measuring condition and trend of forest ranges: a resume of its history, development, and use. In: Techniques and methods of measuring understory vegetation: Proceedings of the symposium; October 1958;

U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Southern and Southeastern Forest Experiment Stations:

55-69.

Thill, R.E.; Bellemore, J.C. 1986. Understory responses

to fertilization of eroded Kisatchie soil in Louisiana. Res.

Note SO-330. New Orleans, LA: U.S. Department of

Agriculture, Forest Service, Southern Forest Experiment Station. 6 p.

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8