using prescribed fire to manage california rangelandscesonoma.ucanr.edu/files/288609.pdf · what...
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Using prescribed fire to manage California rangelands
Jeff StackhouseUniversity of California Cooperative Extension
Livestock and Natural Resources Advisor
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What affects the bottom dollar?• lbs on the truck• 2.5% body weight/day• Unlike trees, fire cannot
be used selectively to burn the understory of forage.
• Drought is unpredictable
• Hay is expensive
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Bad idea!• Consumes RDM• Requires rest.• Alters rotational systems.• Consumes organic matter
reserved for soil. • Reduces forage growth
subsequent year(s). • Liability• Increases forbs (toxic) • Attracts free grazers
(ungulates).
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Benefits of Fire• Goes where 4-wheeler
cannot. • Non-selective consumer
of forage.• Kills those nasty woody
species. • Fresh forage with
increased quality and palatability. – Adds Heterogeneity
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Increased protein, increased palatability, early green-up, altered forage window.
Increases forbs = Important for annual grassland protein req.
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Cow Lactating 1st 90 days – CP%
0%
5%
10%
15%
20%
25%
30%
Early Vegetative Late Vegetative Early Flowering Late Flowering Mature Dry Dry, Leached
Annual Grass
Filaree
Bur Clover
Cow
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Pyric Grazing (Allred et al. 2011)
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Fire for the rangeland ecosystem• Ungulate forage value• Increased forbs• Pollinator response• Fight against
encroachment• Healthy acorn crop
– (F. Lake 2013)
• Heterogeneity increases biodiversity
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Most weed species require numerous treatments for control
Opportunity to strike with additional management
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Resprouts are challenging
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Oct Nov Dec Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul
Natives & forage Growth Senescence
Medusahead, goatgrass, starthistle
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Oct Nov Dec Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul
Natives & forage Growth Senescence
Medusahead, goatgrass, starthistle
Late Phenology
Invasive
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Late-season annual weeds
Photos by: Guy Kyser
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Photo Credit: Guy Kyser
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Medusahead
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Burn NoteJosh Davy (UCCE-Tehama County) • 1,800 lbs of production to 900 lbs.• 79% medusahead to 3.6% in year 2 after single
burn.• Only lasts about 4 years.
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Goatgrass: jointed, barbed, ovate• Take-home: It takes 2 years to control goatgrass.
. . But it lasts longer than medusahead! (>3 yrs)– Year 2 with 100% burn = 100% control– Year 2 with 75% burn = 46% reduction vs cont.
• Suggests: seeds do not live more than 2 years in soil.Other results: • Total veg. cover was decreased following fire• Native species: results indicate that when native species
are present, fire helps, and it too is long-term.
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Yellow Starthistle (DiTomaso et al. 2006)
• Treatments: Recurring Burns, Transline/Burn, Burn/Transline, Transline/Transline, Control
– Best: Year 1 = Burn; Year 2 = Transline (late winter/early spring)
• Year one’s burn stimulates germination of YST just to wipe them out with herbicide
– Added benefit of forage the following year!
• ***Take-home message: In a 2-3 year YST treatment program, the final treatment should not be a burn!– Spot-Spraying will be necessary for lifetimes to follow. – Potentially, management changes should be considered.
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wric.ucdavis.edu
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Using Grazers to Change Fire Behavior
• How?• Mosaic burn patterns• Different grazers alter
different fuels– Goats– Sheep– Cattle– Horses
• Fire can alter livestock use patterns.– Location & forage choices– Increase drought resilience
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Berries burn much better once compacted by snow or livestock…
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Grazing does not always need to be differed when planning an Rx fire… it depends on objectives.
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Chemical Alternative• Pros:
– Cheap – Relatively easy (1 person)– Reduces resprouting– Can have residual– Retain RDM
• Cons:– Need to make the right match– Still have a mess afterwards
(woody)– Scale
Weather dependent. (Neighbors will hate you no
matter what you do…)
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Chemical Treatment Costs
Broadleaf-Herbaceous Plants• Shark @ 1 and 2 oz/acre
– ~$6/oz = $6 to $12/acre
• Milestone @ 3 and 7 oz/acre– ~$2.90/oz = $8.5 to $20/acre
• Transline @ 3 and 7 oz/acre– ~$1.47/oz = $4.5 to $10.5/acre
• 2, 4-D @ 32 and 64 oz/acre– ~$0.15/oz = $4.5 to $9/acre
• Triclopyr @ 32 and 64 oz/acre– ~$0.50/oz = $16 to $32/acre
• Crossbow @ 64 and 128 oz/acre– ~$0.48/oz = $31 to $62/acre
Woody Plants• 2,4-D @ $16.67/gal
– Spray (47 gal*5%)= ~$39.17/acre
• Triclopyr @ $54.82/gal– Spray (47 gal*5%)= ~$128.83/acre
• Imazapyr @ $49.10/gal– Spray (47 gal*5%)= ~$115.38/acre
• Glyphosate @ $31.64/gal – Spray (47 gal*5%)= ~$74.35/acre
Grass Only• Poast @ 16 to 24 oz/acre
– ~$0.78/oz = $13 to $19/acre
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Mechanical Alternative• Cat: $85/hr ($340/acre)• Hired Saw: $15/hr ($487/acre)• Excavator: $125/hr ($975/acre)
Mostly independent of weather, neighbors
tend to be OK with it…
Table 1: LSD mean frequency and cover reduction of Baccharis and bare ground by treatment Treatment Plants/M2 Baccharis reduction, % Bare ground, %
Exc 0.07a1 68b 22b
Cat 0.45a 65b 19b
Saw 1.32b 53a 3a 1Within a column means with a similar letter do not differ
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Fire Costs• Per-acre planning costs vary: operational
efficiency, unit size and shape, fuel types, fire boss preferences, etc. (Cleaves et al. 2000)
• Unit size is one of the most important factors used in calculating per-acre costs (Gonzalez-Caban and McKetta 1986, Rideout and Omi 1995, Cleaves et al. 2000)
• Economies of scale can come at an infrastructure cost (fencing, pipe, etc.) – Acres are a poor metric to measure Rx fire cost
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Initial Equipment Cost• Leather Gloves: $0• Pants/Shirt/Hat: $0• Tool: $0 • Backpack pump/sprayer
or ATV sprayer: $145• Drip Torch: $135• Lighter: $2• Torch Fuel (1.25 gal): $5• Beer: $12Total: $299
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HumCo #1
• Hunt: June 29th
– 18 acres: Medusahead– $500: Burn Plan– $1500: Burn Boss– $600: VFD Stipends– $100: Air Quality + other
• $150/acre
• Mazzeppa: October 31st
– 140 acres: Coyote Brush– $500: Burn Plan– $1000: Burn Boss– $200: Air Quality + other
• $12/acre
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HumCo #2
• Chalk Mt: Dec 14th
– 20 acres: Restored Oak Woodland
– No Burn Plan– No Burn Boss– $100: Air Quality + other
• $5/acre
• Rice: Dec 17th
– 15 acres: Restored Oak Woodland
– No Burn Plan– No Burn Boss– $100: Air Quality + other
• $7/acre
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HumCo #3
• Moore Burns: April 25th
– 5 acres (over 1k acres): Scattered Blackberry
– $500: Burn Plan– $1500: Burn Boss
• (NRCS Requirements)
– $100: Air Quality + other• $420/acre
• Hunt Burn 2: Dec 19th
– 13 acres: Restored Oak Woodland
– No Burn Plan– No Burn Boss– $100: Air Quality + other
• $8/acre
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Final thoughts:
• Rx Fire is compatible with rangelands and livestock production. – Branding culture already exists– Ranchers value wildlife
• Bigger the burn, cheaper the costs, we can beat the herbicide costs with fire on larger acreages.
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Questions?