Pines that have been on fire for several days are a priori capable of reproducing, even after the fires. A quality, however, undermined by the increased risk of fire and drought.
Thousands of ravaged hectares and endless flames threatening the forests. For several days, the trees of Gironde have been plagued by terrible fires, maintained by a generalized heat wave throughout the territory. If firefighters and canadair are working tirelessly to slow the progression of the fire, nearly 20,000 hectares have already gone up in smoke in one week. Is it possible to see them again one day?
At first, yes. Because the maritime pine, which occupies the vast majority of these Landes forests, has an advantage: it can reproduce itself even after fires. “The pine is a pioneer tree which is often the first to constitute the forest: it is able to colonize abandoned land, even after a fire.», explains Eric Rigolot, director of the Ecology of Mediterranean forests unit at INRAE (the national research institute for agriculture, food and the environment). Once the pin is installed, it can allow…