238 BURNING OF PASTURE LANDS 



is destructive to the soil in approximately direct proportion to 

 the amount of inflammable material and the intensity of the heat 

 caused by the fire. A large portion of the superficial roots of 

 most plants is killed, thus leaving the soil exposed to the un- 

 hampered action of erosion. 



7. Such herbaceous forage plants as may become established 

 after the destruction of the brush are temporary in character. 

 As a rule the brush is fully reestablished in three to five years 

 after a fire. 



8. Generally only parts of the stems and branches of the 

 brush and tree trunks are burned. This condition makes grazing 

 difficult, for animals often become snagged and not uncommonly 

 trapped, and a considerable part of the wool of sheep or the mo- 

 hair of goats is pulled out by the animals coming in contact 

 with the harsh unburned vegetation. 



9. In some locaUties goats are effectively used in clearing 

 lands of brush. This, however, can best be done where profit 

 from the animals is secondary to the value of ridding the lands 

 of brush. 



10. Carefully regulated grazing is beneficial in preventing 

 destructive fires and is a distinct aid in fire control. 



QUESTIONS 



1. According to the present available information, when did range and 

 forest fires first occur in this country? Name the chief originating causes. 



2. How docs repeated burning of range and pasture compare in destruc- 

 tiveness with severe overgrazing? 



3. What effect did the settlement of the country have on the number and 

 frequency of fires? 



4. Approximately, what was the average acreage of burned-over lands and 

 the monetary loss resulting therefrom in the United States between 1916 and 

 1918, inclusive? 



5. To what extent are fires purposely set at the present time in the East, 

 middle West, far West, and South? 



6. Name the two chief reasons why many stockmen, more particularly in 

 the South, still favor burning over the range each year? What foundation 

 in fact is there for these reasons? 



7. What arc the chief functions of the vegetation which remains on the 

 ground and decays? 



