Pitch Pine-Scrub Oak Stands Stands similar in composition to those in the Plains arise from slightly less frequent or less intense fires which give the pines more growing time. This composition apparently results from severe fires at intervals of possibly 30 to 40 years, certainly at longer intervals than in the pitch pine-scrub oak areas. In the oak-pine stands, large pines have usually been deformed by past fires and if any oaks survived the last fire, they will probably have basal wounds. Just as a history of fire can alter the composition of a forest, it can also affect the undergrowth. Frequent light f ires tend to reduce the shrub cover and favor herbaceous plants, especially along roads or under open stands.
Severe fires can also reduce the shrub cover, especially of huckleberries.
On sandy sites, severe fires favor such species as golden-heather un til they are once again crowded out by the spread of blueberries and huckleberries. Pine Stands Foresters believe park-like stands of pine prevailed in the original forest, due to the frequent fires the Indians set, mostly in the fall and winter. Similar stands with mature trees reaching heights of 65 to 100 feet are apparently favored by frequ ent light fires. Prescribed burning, as used in the Pine Barrens by foresters in recent years, calls for setting light fires, mostly in the winter, to reduce accumulation of fuel. Although this is mainly done to reduce the wildfire hazard, prescribed bu rning tends to create pine stands of seedling or seedling-sprout origin and to permit trees to develop without the deformities created by severe fires.