Prescribed fire is an excellent tool for a wildlife manager and landowners to use on their properties to control succession/plant growth, manage invasive species, remove unwanted debris/vegetation, and regenerate new growth of plants, trees, and shrubs. Fire, when used correctly, is one of the best and certainly most cost-effective practices available to managers.
Historically, fire played a huge role in controlling the growth of plant communities in the mid-South. Wildfires would break out from lightning strikes and burn sections of land, creating a landscape made up of highly diverse plant communities that allowed wildlife to thrive.
Since man came along and suppressed these seasonal fires, diversity and fire-dependent plant communities have greatly decreased, and wildlife, among other things, have suffered. By implementing good fire under the proper conditions and with the correct timing, we're able to mimic nature and use fire as a tool to create diversity and fire-dependent plant communities, stimulate new growth, and fight invasive plants.
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