🚀 go-pugleaf

Eastern deciduous forest covers almost all eastern area of North America.
Text book (example, E.G Bolen 1998, Ecology of North America) usually claims
that the persistence of the coastal pine forest is the result of fire. It is
no doubt that pines are more resistent to fire than the competing oaks. But
without fire, will costal pine forest be replaced by decidous forest? Some
oaks certainly may get in, but how about other deciduous species such as maple
beech, and birch? Coastal plain is on very nutrient poor sandy soils. Annual
nitrogen production in New Jersey Pine Barren is only 40 kg/ha. That is far
below the normal range of 60-120 kg/ha in most deciduous forests. Indeed, fire
is also the unavoidable result of low nutrient. It is low litter nutrient, not
the low temperature, or low precipitation, which slows decomposition, and
provides accumulated litter for fire.
I would like to hear the comments on this issue.

Weixing Zhu, postdoc
Louis Calder Center
Fordham University
Armonk, NY 10504