Quiet Fire – Burning the Prairie

THE QUIET FIRE

“These frequent fires enhanced biodiversity and stabilized forest systems through periods of dramatic environmental change. They have the potential to increase forest resiliency to changing climate, unplanned wildfire, and non-native species in the years ahead.” (Fall2023 Intangible)

Please read the story about quiet fire in the forests and ecosystems of the Great Lakes region, page 16-19: Restoring Relationships with QUIET FIRE. It will wake you up to the quiet fire.

THE BURN

It had been thirteen years since I had last burned my prairie. Most years, by the time the snow melted and the buds on the sugar maple tree (Acer saccharum) were beginning to open, it was too wet to burn or there were burn restrictions in place. By the same token, after the rains came in the fall, it was again too wet. (My prairie is about five feet lower than my residence and butts up to the creek.)

But this year was different. There was no snow. It was dry. The prairie thatch was laying down. It’s not that I thought there would be no more snow, but I was determined to do a burn.

I applied for a fire permit on Wednesday. When the assistant fire marshal came by the next day, I told her I was adhering to Lorrie Otto’s and Wild Ones’ recommendations that you burn only one-quarter of your planting annually rather than the entire site or garden. My prairie is marked by paths, so I could easily burn around it. I explained to her what I was going to burn, what precautions I had made, and what time I was expecting to do it the next day. She told me to not burn if it was too windy – that I should make sure the winds were lower than 8 mph.

Thank goodness, I got the burn permit, because by Saturday, conditions were so dry that no more fires were allowed.

The next day was so-o-o-o perfect! There was no wind at all in the morning, although the wind had picked up a bit by eleven o’clock. I called the fire department to let them know I was going to burn, then made my way outside to the prairie and started the first burn.

First I lighted against the wind – and then the other side – with the wind. The photos below show the result.

For a better view, click any photo, then click again to enlarge it.

Read Accent of Natural Landscaping Burning Followup.