On the slope above the stream I find a clearing densely populated with young aspens amid the surrounding conifer forest. Older trees show lines of charred bark along their lower trunks, and burned aspen logs lie decaying in the wake of a fire that swept through several years ago. Human intervention prevented the fire from spreading far or afflicting many conifer trees, but the few thin barked aspens interspersed with fir and spruce were more vulnerable and suffered heavy damage. Now surveying the exuberant growth of the young ramets, I gain a deeper understanding of the aspen growth cycle. Fire is essential to the health and rejuvenation of a grove burning away dead undergrowth, over-mature ramets, and conifer branches that shade out the sun.
Fire provides a form of renovation, a return to the beginning.
The roots grow dormant under the shade of evergreens. Yet with the removal of older growth, the resilient young suckers continue the life cycle. Without the aspen, the biodiversity of the Montane Life Zone would be significantly decreased. Most species in a given ecosystem owe their existence to the myriad connections to other species, none overly abundant but together creating a functional whole, an interdependent community able to meet the needs of all its inhabitants. There are also organisms that play versatile roles, supporting and strengthening all of the others and providing the building blocks of a habitat.