Most of the Southeastern pines require bare soil for significant natural reproduction, and fire creates such a seedbed. Two of the pines found in Alabama are particularly adapted to fire. Longleaf pine generally depends upon fires for establishment, release from competition, and control of brownspot needle blight. Wiregrass in southeastern Alabama requires a summer fire for significant seed production. Other plants, such as running oak and pencil flower, have been noted to produce more flowers and seed in the year of or the year after a summer fire.
Fires produce habitat for many game and non-game species.
Periodic fires or other disturbances are necessary to keep forage within reach of a diverse group of herbivores, including white-tailed deer and gopher tortoises, and to provide suitable habitat for other animals, such as bobwhite quail. The comparative lack of fire in many Southeastern ecosystems has caused many of the species adapted to fire, such as red cockaded woodpeckers, gopher tortoises, and Bachman's sparrows, to become increasingly less common. Prescribed summer fire is similar to prescribed fire in other seasons in that a burn prescription is developed to help reach a management goal. Summer fire can be used for hazard or fuel reduction, site preparation for seeding or planting, hardwood control, wildlife management, increased visibility and access, and aesthetics. Under the right conditions, summer fire removes fuel and reduces the potential for destructive wildfire.