Fire and non‐native grass invasion interact to suppress tree regeneration in temperate deciduous forests

Abstract

Summary While many ecosystems depend on fire to maintain biodiversity, non‐native plant invasions can enhance fire intensity, suppressing native species and generating a fire–invasion feedback. These dynamics have been observed in arid and semi‐arid ecosystems, but fire–invasion interactions in temperate deciduous forests, where prescribed fires are often used as management tools to enhance native diversity, have rarely been investigated. Here we evaluated the effects of a widespread invasive grass on fire behaviour in eastern deciduous forests in the USA and the potential effects of fire and invasions on tree regeneration. We planted native trees into invaded and uninvaded forests, quantified fuel loads, then applied landscape‐scale prescribed fires and no‐burn controls, and measured fire behaviour and tree seedling and invasive plant performance. Our results show that fires in invaded habitats were significantly more intense, including higher fire temperatures, longer duration and higher flame heights, even though invasions did not alter total fuel loads. The invasion plus fire treatment suppressed native tree seedling survival by 54% compared to invasions without fire, and invasions reduced natural tree recruitment by 66%. We also show that invasive plant biomass did not change from one season to the next in plots where fire was applied, but invader biomass declined significantly in unburned reference plots, suggesting a positive invasive grass–fire feedback. Synthesis and applications . These findings demonstrate that fire–invasion interactions can have significant consequences for invaded temperate forest ecosystems by increasing fire intensity and reducing tree establishment while promoting invasive plant persistence. To encourage tree regeneration and slow invasive spread, we recommend that forest managers remove invasions prior to applying prescribed fires or avoid the use of fire in habitats invaded by non‐native grasses.