Rangeland Alliance see’s the fruits of their labor

Rangeland Alliance see’s the fruits of their labor
The McPheeter pasture South of Gothenburg was the site of an experimental late summer burn.
June 16th, 2021 | Clay Patton

The Central Platte Rangeland Alliance has worked to fight back the spread of the Eastern Red Cedar in Central Nebraska for nearly 2 decades. Their primary and most proven method over those years has been prescribed burning in the spring. However as more people see the results and want to use prescribed fire to control the cedar trees on their land the available burn days are quickly becoming unavailable. In the late summer of 2020 the CPRA tried a summer burn for the first time South of Gothenburg. The terrain was not the most friendly, but everyone felt good about how the burn concluded.

Last week the burn crews were able to see the fruits of their labor as the CPRA hosted their annual burn tour. The tour encompassed three properties that were burned this spring and late last summer. The cedar kill on all of the properties was estimated to be over 90%. Mark Alberts the burn boss says part of the reason for the high success rate was the land owners attention to detail and being prepared for their burn. “It’s all about preparation for a successful burn. Tree patches need stuffed and fuel load needs to be ready by resting the ground a grazing season.” Explains Alberts

Participants in the burn tour included those who are considering prescribed burning on their land. Several on the tour commented they were impressed with how the land that was burned this year and last year looks now. It also surprises them that it takes years of work to properly prepare for a burn. Along with needing just the right conditions and plenty of help to have a successful burn.

Listen to interviews from the burn tour here:

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