As a wildfire painter, I've been wanting to get real close to a fire in nature. I finally didn't have to chase one down but was invited to witness a prescribed burn here in northwest Florida.
I had the wonderful opportunity to go out with the Florida Forest Service and learn more about what they do and how they do it. I learned a lot of things from witnessing this burn and I'm just sharing 7 thing I learned from a prescribed burn.
1. Fire in Florida is used as a tool, to help manage the land and benefits plants and animals.
2. The same piece of land needs to be burned at least every 5-7 years.
3. Every plant has a different smell when it is burned. Some smell very sweet.
4. Small green plants and mosses survive these prescribed burns.
5. Plants and animals benefit from the burn almost immediately.
6. Even gentle burns, like the one I went to, that don't kick up a lot of smoke are beautiful to witness and learn from.
7. Humans relationship to the land is important. Without humans managing the land--especially where we live--nature will take care of things and sometimes that means communities and structures can be destroyed by the forces of nature.
If you have any questions or comments feel free to leave them here or on my video in youtube.
ANNASTASHA
