New paper in Frontiers in Forests and Global Change

Forest restoration will be an important tool to combat the dual threats of drought and fire, both of which have been increasing in frequency and severity in recent years in the Western United States. To better understand the ecology and potential for restoration of endemic bigcone Douglas-fir, Pseudotsuga macrocarpa, in southern California, we outplanted 1,728 seedlings into burned areas with varying levels of pre-planting fire severity and proximity to water (near canyon bottom and upslope). Seedling success depended strongly on the microhabitat and summer watering. The most successful microhabitats for planting were open sites with microsite features and sites underneath canyon live oak, while sites under mature bigcone Douglas-firs had the lowest rates of survival.