Years ago in an environmental class I learned that fires in forests did several things. First if they happened regularly they eliminated the kindling for massive fires that destroyed the trees. Second they were needed for many plants to reseed. So some pines needed the fires for their seeds for be released to bring about the next generation of trees. There were other benefits but I have forgotten them at this point (1970s). There was some talk for awhile about necessary control burns but I think the lumber industry was too much against it. I can’t really say that this is what stopped the measure. There may have been many other factors. There of course is the problem that if you have prevented fires for decades then you have the kindling that will destroy the matured trees so you can’t really have a ‘controlled’ burn. I would like to hear from others who know anything about this if that is still possible in the world of social media.
D0D on
Didnt know it was called like this in English. In Estonian it’s called Moose Cannabis 😀
It makes a for a good tea.
>In Russia, fireweed (C. angustifolium) is made into a tea known as Ivan Chai[22] or Koporsky tea (from the town of Koporye, where it has been produced since the 13th century).[23] They use it as highly prized medicinal herb too. The popularity of fireweed tea perhaps stems from the similarity of its production to that of common black tea (Camellia sinensis), leading to a richly flavoured and deeply coloured herbal tea, with no caffeine, it is commercially sold in a blend with mint or thyme.
Soon_nami50 on
It’s amazing the life that fire gives in nature. So resilient.
shinystuff9 on
Another cool thing about fireweed is that as the flowers die off, the stems turn red.
weaselmaster on
Circle of life, sure, but the huge carbon sink that was the trees of this forest will take decades to regrow and capture as much carbon. Fire == Bad.
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Years ago in an environmental class I learned that fires in forests did several things. First if they happened regularly they eliminated the kindling for massive fires that destroyed the trees. Second they were needed for many plants to reseed. So some pines needed the fires for their seeds for be released to bring about the next generation of trees. There were other benefits but I have forgotten them at this point (1970s). There was some talk for awhile about necessary control burns but I think the lumber industry was too much against it. I can’t really say that this is what stopped the measure. There may have been many other factors. There of course is the problem that if you have prevented fires for decades then you have the kindling that will destroy the matured trees so you can’t really have a ‘controlled’ burn. I would like to hear from others who know anything about this if that is still possible in the world of social media.
Didnt know it was called like this in English. In Estonian it’s called Moose Cannabis 😀
It makes a for a good tea.
>In Russia, fireweed (C. angustifolium) is made into a tea known as Ivan Chai[22] or Koporsky tea (from the town of Koporye, where it has been produced since the 13th century).[23] They use it as highly prized medicinal herb too. The popularity of fireweed tea perhaps stems from the similarity of its production to that of common black tea (Camellia sinensis), leading to a richly flavoured and deeply coloured herbal tea, with no caffeine, it is commercially sold in a blend with mint or thyme.
It’s amazing the life that fire gives in nature. So resilient.
Another cool thing about fireweed is that as the flowers die off, the stems turn red.
Circle of life, sure, but the huge carbon sink that was the trees of this forest will take decades to regrow and capture as much carbon. Fire == Bad.