November 2022 • Nebraskaland 37
In the oak woodlands, the fi re had top-killed many smaller,
shade-producing ironwoods and hackberries. Although these
trees would eventually re-sprout, more sunlight was now
reaching the forest fl oor, allowing wildfl owers to fl ourish.
Only a few aspen saplings had been top-killed, but these, too,
would re-sprout.
And the deer blind? The short, mowed grass below the
blind, somewhat miraculously, never caught fi re and the
blind survived.
At day's end, we sat on a high hill and gazed down on a
bluff that hardly resembled its pre-restoration state: The tree
cutting and fi res had done their job. Low on the bluff , the oak
woods were now open, and the high slopes were cloaked with
oak and ponderosa pine savanna. The fuel level was visibly
reduced, making the bluff ecosystem more resistant to future
wildfi res. This one-time intern glowed with satisfaction.
N
Hairy puccoon fl owers bloom in a now open stand of bur oak and ponderosa pine. Fire-killed eastern
red-cedar saplings and the stumps of cut cedars are visible in the center of the photo.
GERRY STEINAUER, NEBRASKALAND
