TEXAS JUNIPER with Prescribed Burning Chase T
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ERM-046 03/19 Managing TEXAS JUNIPER with Prescribed Burning Chase T. Brooke* and Morgan Treadwell** Summary • Maintaining a 5–7-yr fire return interval should prevent new juniper establishment The management of juniper, commonly in rangelands and pastures by killing referred to as cedar, throughout Texas young juniper seedlings while they are still spans multiple species and regions, each vulnerable to fire mortality. requiring differing methods of managing the encroachment of these woody plants. Fire is Introduction one management method that is effective at managing juniper under the right conditions. The rangelands of Texas are increasingly However, the timing and intensity requirements threatened by the encroachment of woody plants. for an effective fire are dependent on the While considered noxious by some landowners, species of juniper. This paper classifies juniper junipers are native to many ecosystems. species as either resprouting or non-resprouting Historically, natural and human-caused fires and provides general fire management maintained grasslands and savannas, while recommendations for landowners and land keeping junipers restricted to fire-sheltered parts managers. of the landscape. However, the combination of overgrazing and fire suppression has allowed Management Summary junipers to invade many rangelands across Texas. After juniper stands become established, they • Non-resprouting juniper can generally be become increasingly costly to manage and thus managed using less intense growing season inhibit restoration efforts. fires. This paper has three objectives: • Resprouting juniper are difficult to manage • To identify the key species of native juniper with fire alone; however, fire may be able that encroach upon Texas rangelands. to suppress new seedlings and inhibit new • Summarize the biology of these species trees from establishing. and identify them as resprouting or non- resprouting. * County Extension Agent, Agriculture & Natural Resources ** Assistant Professor and Range Extension Specialist • Broadly describe the effects of prescribed The Texas A&M University System fire on each species. The primary species of Juniper in Texas the main stem is burned or removed. Generally, non-resprouting junipers are more susceptible Five species of juniper (Juniperus ashei, and sensitive to fire. Additionally, older and J. pinchotti, J. virginiana, J. monosperma, larger trees are able to withstand fire effects and J. deppeana) are primarily found across better than younger ones. Texas. Each of these species occurs in different regions of the state, with some overlap. As Burning Juniper such, each juniper species has adapted physical Prescribed burning requires the correct characteristics that allow it to persist and application, timing, and weather conditions to establish within its range. As a part of these successfully manage juniper. One key factor is adaptations, they also respond differently to fire. the moisture content of juniper foliage; when An effective juniper management plan takes the moisture content is greater than 80%, it these physical characteristics and adaptations may require over 3500lbs/ac of fine fuel to into account in order to maximize results. ignite that tree. As the fuel moisture level drops Resprouting and Non-resprouting Juniper however, the tree can be ignited using less fuel. From a management perspective, the juniper species of Texas can be broadly split into either resprouting or non-resprouting species. A critical part of managing juniper is correctly identifying the species present, as effective management of juniper depends on the biology of the plant. A juniper is considered to be resprouting if, once the main stem is cut, killed, or removed, new shoots will sprout from the belowground bud zone on the root collar of the plant (Fig. 1). This requires very different management techniques compared to non- resprouting junipers, which will die off after Figure 1: A picture of the bud zone on a redberry Figure 2: A juniper burning during a prescribed fire. juniper (J. pinchotti). This zone is exposed above- Note how the flames are consuming a large portion of ground for the first 7 years, which makes fire more the juniper canopy, thereby improving the likelihood effective at killing resprouting junipers in this time. of tree mortality. However, a resprouting juniper may Photo courtesy of Dr. Darrell Ueckert. persist even if the aboveground stem is destroyed. 2 Most juniper species may develop very dense Response to Fire canopies that shade out and prevent grasses and Ashe junipers are readily managed with fire, other fuels from growing under them. One way herbicide, or mechanical removal. Fire is most to improve fire-effectiveness under high-fuel effective at suppressing Ashe juniper within moisture conditions is to pile cut juniper limbs the first 10 years after seedling establishment. and trees under large individual trees or into Seedlings and trees less than 10 feet tall are cedar breaks. This cut-and-stuff method can the most vulnerable, though mature trees can provide cured ladder fuels to push the fire up still be managed with intense fires. As a non- into the canopy and increase the intensity of the resprouting juniper, if sufficient topkill of the fire thereby increasing the likelihood of the tree plant is achieved, then there is little chance to burn (Figure 2). of individual recovery. Burning during the Regardless of the way fire is ignited, careful winter and late spring inhibits Ashe juniper planning is required to conduct a safe and establishment by killing the fire-sensitive successful burn that meets management sprouts and seedlings along with removing objectives. Proper construction of firelines, larger trees. As such, fire is a very effective checking the weather conditions before, during, method of managing Ashe juniper. The fire and after the fire, along with staying in control conditions required to manage Ashe juniper are of fire operations are all key parts of ensuring a easily attained in winter/spring burns. Winter successful burn. fires may be preferable to reduce the negative impact of fire on more desirable woody species Non-Resprouting Junipers such as oak or pecan trees. Implementing a fire Ashe Juniper (J. ashei) return interval of 5–15 years is likely to actively remove and suppress Ashe juniper. Common names: • Ashe cedar • Ash juniper • Blueberry cedar Prevalent across central Texas, parts of Oklahoma and Arkansas (Fig. 3), Ashe juniper is a non-resprouting evergreen tree with a relatively short and bushy form which often forms thick stands along with oaks, pecans, and other trees. The tree can grow up to 30ft tall, though typical heights in open fields tend to be closer to 9–12 ft. Ashe juniper is characterized by yellow-green foliage, with blue fleshy cones that resemble berries, long shredding bark, and dense foliage with scaly leaves. Ashe juniper seeds sprout in the late winter and early spring and take approximately 10–20 years for female Figure 3: The approximate distribution of Ashe trees to mature and begin producing seed. juniper (J. ashei) across Texas. 3 Eastern Redcedar (J. virginiana) fuels, while larger trees are more likely to be killed Common names: in late-spring burns. Given the ability of eastern red cedar to grow rapidly under higher rainfall in • Eastern red cedar the eastern portions of the state, a maximum fire • Red cedar return interval of 10 years is necessary. The eastern red cedar (Juniperus virginiana) is a non-resprouting juniper primarily found One-seed Juniper (J. monosperma) along the southeast US, though it extends Common names: into Central Texas and Central Oklahoma in • One-seed cedar its westernmost extent (Fig. 4). A common • Sabina colonizer of open ranges, eastern red cedar is One-seed juniper is a non-resprouting juniper fire intolerant and has expanded readily with that grows across the American southwest and the widespread fire suppression across the Great into the panhandle and western portions of Plains. The tree can grow over 60 ft tall, with Texas (Fig. 5). Individual junipers may grow trunk diameters reaching over 3 ft. Individuals up to 10–40 ft tall depending on the location, reach maturity at 10 years of age and produce age, and water availability. Trees are also very small amounts of fruit annually with a large drought resistant and are able to slow growth production of fruit every 2–3 years. during dry years, only to continue growing after Response to Fire rainfall. One-seed juniper is thus, generally slow- In many ways, managing eastern red cedar growing, averaging between 1–4 in of vertical with fire is similar to managing Ashe juniper. In growth per year depending on site conditions. mixed oak-juniper forests, small trees (<3 ft tall) Female trees will begin seed production between are readily controlled using winter burns with 10–50 years of age, and berries may persist on recommended fuel loads of 2000 lbs/ac of fine the tree for 1–2 years. Figure 4: The approximate distribution of eastern Figure 5: The approximate distribution of One-seed red cedar (J. virginiana) in Texas. juniper (J. monosperma) in Texas. 4 Response to Fire One-seed juniper is very susceptible to fire due to their slow growth and inherent biology. Like other non-resprouting junipers, winter and spring fires are able to remove existing trees and suppress their reestablishment. Fire is effective at removing shorter one-seed junipers regardless of age, though tall individuals may require alternative treatments. Regular reapplication of fire every 10–20 years will suffice to prevent the reestablishment of one-seed juniper, as its slow growth provides a larger window of treatment compared to other faster growing species. Resprouting Junipers Figure 6: The approximate distribution of alligator juniper (J. deppeana) in Texas. Alligator Juniper (J. deppeana) Common names: resistant to fire relative to other juniper species. • Alligator cedar Low-severity fires have little effect on removing • Mountain cedar mature junipers over 4 inches in diameter, and • Tascate severe fires are only marginally able to kill them.