Article Written by:
Yvonne Barkley, University of Idaho Extension, Moscow, ID
Predicting the mortality of conifers after a wildfire is important for post-fire planning and management. Fire resistance varies greatly with plant species and factors such as age. In general, young, fast-growing trees on good sites will be better able to withstand damage from fire than over-mature, slow-growing trees on poor sites.
Additional general statements that hold true across species are:
- as the percent of crown scorch increases, mortality increases.