Would a fire be an advantage or disadvantage in maintaining a longlead pine forest to obtain turpentine?

Question

Would a fire be an advantage or disadvantage in maintaining a longlead pine forest to obtain turpentine?

Answer 1

Long leaf pines are somewhat tolerant of fire.  Fire was part of the long leaf pine ecosystem prior to the development of forest farms.  It is hypothesized that fire would release much of the nutrients tied up in the leaf litter and would allow the development of some legumes in the understory.  These legumes would add nitrogen to the forest ecosystem and enhance long leaf pine growth.  The same fire would also destroy those limbs lost (long leaf pines are self trimming) and thin out those pines weakened by insect infestation.  It is also thought the fire may destroy many of the insects that negatively affect long leaf pine production.

This, however, is largely theory.  The cost of conducting the experiments needed to prove this is somewhat prohibitive.

Answer 2

Longleaf pine is not only tolerant of fire, it is dependent on it. Longleaf grows in a region called the Sandhills. It is so named because the topsoil is composed mostly of sand which runs very deep before encountering any clay. This means that the water table is very far below the surface. Fire is crucial to longleaf regeneration and early growth. First a fire will wipe out a lot of the understory allowing the longleaf seed to sprout on the ground. For about the next 7 years the longleaf seedling does not grow up but rather down. The tree focuses most of its energy establishing a very deep root system. The terminal bud (responsible for further growth) is protected from fires by a dense cluster of needles. Fire is vital in this stage to as it keeps other trees and vegetation from shading out the young longleaf. After the root system is well developed the tree shoots upward. This is when it is most vulnerable to fire death until it reaches about 8 feet in height. A continuing system of fires burning every 5-10 years keeps other vegetation down which frees the longleaf from competition for sunlight when it is young and water through out its entire life. With out fire longleaf is out competed by many of the scrub oaks such as Blue Jack and Turkey Oak and will eventually disappear from the landscape. So all in all fire is not so much an advantage as it is a necessity.