The post-fire environment
Immediately after a fire, the landscape looks pretty awful – to human eyes.
However for many native plant species, the post-fire environment presents opportunities.
Fire opens up the canopy and allows sunlight through to ground level. The mulching effect of litter is reduced. Because some adult plants are killed, water becomes more available. Nutrient levels change. Animals and insects that eat plants are less abundant. Diseases may be less of a problem.
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Fire creates open spaces - gaps - for seedlings to establish.
So once rain falls, you have an ideal environment for seedlings to germinate and grow.
Quite a few Aussie plants from fire-prone environments do all, or most, of their seedling recruitment after a fire.
Photo 1:
Wallum heath, Bribie Island, Qld, 6 weeks after fire. At this early post-fire stage, many species have sent up new shoots, but seedlings are yet to appear. You can see the gaps waiting for them.
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Photo 2:
Shrubby woodland, Mount Banks, Blue Mountains, NSW, 11 months after fire. By this time, lots of seedlings have germinated in the gaps. There are seedlings of at least three species in this photo - grey-green Flannel Flowers, bright green Parrot Peas, and small feathery-leaved Boronias.
To take advantage of these post-fire conditions, plants need seeds ready to go.
Read about seeds and fire, or
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