Can fire be good for wildlife, and in particular, whitetail deer? You bet, if the fire is controlled (prescribed fire). Furthermore, fire can also be good for your property as well.
In earlier times, naturally occurring fires were a continual reality of life. These fires kept plant succession under control and allowed for a more diverse habitat. The Native Americans also knew the benefits of fire. But wildfires became the bogeyman several decades ago and, thanks to Smokey the Bear and public education, wildfires were brought under control. However, as has been illustrated in the West, a regular natural occurrence of fire kept things under more control. With no fires for decades, huge amounts of fuel have built up in many timberlands and scrublands, resulting in monstrous wildfires that destroy untold numbers of homes and kill people and wildlife.
Fire can be a friend to wildlife if it is done in the proper manner, at the correct time and under the right conditions. It can be a great help in creating or enhancing deer habitat. Fire can be used to kill back invasive brush and Eastern Red cedars, providing more opportunities for forages such as young hardwoods. Fire can be used to remove timberland fuel and forest floor duff, allowing forbs – deer favorites – to flourish. Fire can be used to enhance clearings and old fields that are growing into later succession. Fire can be used to help kill fescue in order to establish successful food plots. And fire can also be used to reestablish or create native warm-season grasses.
Again the key is a “controlled” fire not a “wild” fire. Prescribed fires are done as precisely as possible, determined by wind direction, humidity, fuel levels, area to be burned and other factors. Many state natural resource departments have information on doing controlled burns, even personnel to help in some cases. Some states also conduct prescribed fire schools. These are invaluable learning experiences for anyone wanting to learn the proper methods. Check with your local Soil and Water Conservation District offices as well as state agencies, including forestry offices.
Don’t attempt a controlled burn by yourself or without learning the proper methods. Even the experts occasionally end up with an “uncontrolled” burn. Proper timing, having the right tools and understanding how to plan and conduct a prescribed burn are extremely important. Timing of the burn is extremely important. Burns implemented at different times of the year have different effects on different vegetations. The frequency of burns also has a major effect. The first step is to determine your goals. These can be killing back brush, eradicating fescue, improving timber stand or managing native warm season grasses.
To kill fescue, plan to burn in the fall or late winter. Burn timberlands and brushy areas every three years in the spring to kill back buckbrush, Western iron weed, honey locust, Osage orange saplings and Eastern red cedars. Burning in the spring also increases deer browse. It may take two or three burns to kill many woody plants, except for the cedars.
A number of burning hazards occur and you are legally responsible for any damages caused by a prescribed burn. This includes smoke as well as fire damage. If you intend to burn in an area that might have a potential of creating fire or smoke damage, you should first see your lawyer. Although the damage caused by wildfire is obvious, less obvious is the damage caused by smoke. Prescribed burning should not be done within one mile of an airport, and in fact may be illegal.
Avoid allowing smoke to reach residences, businesses and farm operations such as dairies, hog operations, horse stables and chickens houses. Smoke can also create a serious hazard for motorists on public roads. You are responsible for an accident caused by your prescribed burn. Always burn when the wind is blowing away from any public roads and have plenty of people to help direct traffic if the wind shifts. Heavy concentrations of smoke can also conduct electricity, allowing a discharge from a power line to the ground, much like a lightning strike.
Several conditions must be met to alleviate smoke problems. This includes a wind of at least 5 to 15 mph. The cloud cover should be less than 70 percent and there must be a ceiling of at least 2,000 feet to allow the smoke to rise above the ground and then be dispersed into the atmosphere.
Prescribed burning is hard and stressful work. Persons with health problems, including respiratory disease, heart conditions and high blood pressure, should not participate in controlled burns. Keep a close watch on all persons for heat stroke, heat exhaustion or smoke inhalation.
Proper safety equipment must be worn, including clothing of natural fibers such as cotton or wool. Synthetic clothing melts at high temperatures and can cause serious burns. The clothing must cover arms and legs. You will also need a sprayer capable of 125 psi pressure and at least an output of six gallons of water per minute. A tank sprayer on an ATV or trailer pulled behind an ATV can be extremely helpful. Backpack sprayers are also extremely handy. Hand tools such as rakes, broom rakes, fire swatters and even wet sacks can be used to control fire lines. A drip torch makes it easier and safer to string backfire lines. You’ll also need pliers and bolt cutters for cutting fences and locked gates if needed to escape. And lastly, have plenty of water on hand.
Before you start the burn, inform local fire departments, sheriff’s offices, local forestry offices or other necessary public officials of the burn. Then notify them when the burn ceases. Also notify all neighbors before and after the burn. This prevents unnecessary runs by fire departments and also puts them on the alert should you have to call them in.
The most important element in a successful burn is a burn plan. The plan should include what will be burned and how and when, along with the necessary precautions. Use an aerial photo, topographical map, or even a hand drawing of the area to be burned. Mark all-important features including power lines, gates, fences, neighbors, houses and the direction of preferred smoke dispersal. Mark natural or created firebreaks. They must be wide enough to prevent sparks or embers from drifting to unburned areas and starting another fire. Normally, firebreaks should be at least twice as wide as the vegetation to be burned is high. Natural firebreaks can be streams, green crop fields, little used farm lanes or closely grazed cool season grasses. Firebreaks can also be created of either bare soil or cool-season grasses. The former is the best; grazing or mowing to keep a short, thick stand of cool-season grasses with little dry fuel to burn, can create the latter.
Another type of firebreak is a burned firebreak. These are established around the perimeter, taking advantage of any natural firebreaks as well. Lighting short lengths of vegetation on the downwind side of the burn-area boundary create these. They are allowed to burn about 15 to 20 feet, then extinguished. A new area is burned along the perimeter until a burned firebreak is created.
Wetlines are another type of firebreak and are one of the most common forms used when conducting prescribed burns. Using a high-pressure sprayer to dampen a narrow strip of vegetation from which a backfire is lit creates wetlines. Once the fire backs away from the wet strip a foot or so, it is sprayed to extinguish it.
It is extremely important that certain conditions be met for a safe, controlled burn; and weather is the most important condition. Wind direction and wind speed must be correct to match the burn plan. Relative humidity should be between 30 and 60 percent and temperature should be 45 to 75 degrees. Cloud cover should be clear to 70 percent clear and the ceiling should be 2,000 feet or higher. Obtain weather forecasts from local or national weather reports, and do not hesitate to cancel the burn if all conditions are not met. As relative humidity and temperatures rise, burning becomes more difficult to control. Prescribed burns are best conducted in the morning when better humidity and temperature conditions exist.
If all conditions are right, firebreaks are established, equipment and help is on hand, and you have a plan in hand, begin the burn in a downwind corner of the area. Begin with a small test fire to make sure everything is working properly and then light a backfire in small enough sections so the burn crew can properly handle the fire. This should result in a continued ring around the perimeter until you reach the upwind side. Different wind directions dictate the types of backfires and types of burns. This may be a ring burn, strip burn, head fire or flank fire.
It normally requires at least three to four people for each fireline. One lights the fireline, one or two control the fireline and one is left to mop-up and make sure no fires restart outside the firebreak. An L-shaped fireline requires at least six workers. Carefully monitor the entire area during the burn. Once the burn is completed, make a check of the perimeter to make sure sparks and embers haven’t created a fire outside the firebreak area. Watch snags and brushpiles to make sure they don’t allow embers outside the burn area.
A controlled burn can be a major factor in successful deer management. Learn how to do it safely. Entire books are written on the subject and schools are available. Make sure you obtain the needed information and schooling necessary before conducting a burn.
