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Re: [iowa-native-plants] Re: Sporobolus heterolepis and fire

Robert
Prairie dropseed may burn a bit more than other particularly if duff has
been accumulating for quite awhie.  However, prairie dropseed is fire
adapted such that flowering and seed set is greatly enhanced with
burning.  In 1988 we did some sampling when we had dropseed on both
sides of the fire line.  On the unburned side there was no flowering on
12 clumps (no flowering was unusual as there is sometimes a little
flowering without fire).  On the burned side: flowering and seed set was
profuse, ranging from 20 stalks on a very small clump to several hundred
on the larger clums, 29 out of 30 flowered profusely, the one that
didn't flower was a small clump that was killed by the fire.  In
addition, I am of the opinion that the fire burning in the larger clumps
may kill part of the clump, but it subdivides the plant and
reinvigorates it.
Daryl Smith

Robert Wernerehl wrote:
> 
> This year while burning some remnants, I noticed that when prairie sod here
> has Sporobolus heterolepis (prairie dropseed grass) and when it hasn't been
> burned for a number of years, that the clumps of dropseed burn quite a bit
> longer due to accumulated duff, than they do when they are regularly
> burned. The clumps are burning long after the rest is out. It becomes a
> peat fire, basically. And apparently it can kill the clump of dropseed.
> With the death of the dropseed goes the habitat of the red-tailed
> leafhopper (federally listed). Here is a case when lack of fire can most
> likely be quite detrimental to an insect population. This is just
> conjectural, just an observation. I have no data to prove it. It got me
> thinking and I wondered what others thought. Also, it led me to going
> around and using water to put out the dropseed fires in hopes of saving the
> plant. With regular fire, you don't have to do this.
> 
> Bob Wernerehl
> 8237 Sweeny Road
> Barneveld, WI 53507

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