A device for the standard measurement of the flammability of whole plant shoots

JAUREGUIBERRY, P.; BERTONE, G.; DÍAZ S. M.; CUCHIETTI; A.

Chania, Grecia

Simposio; 52 Symposium of the International Association for Vegetation Science,; 2009

International Association for Vegetation Science

Fire is an important factor shaping the structure and dynamics of plant communities worldwide. The flammability of the dominant plant species strongly determines the overall tendency of vegetation to catch and spread fire, and therefore is an important plant trait influencing the functioning of these ecosystems (effect trait). We define plant/shoot flammability as having four components: maximum temperature reached (MTR), burning time (BT), burnt length (BL) and percentage of burnt biomass (PBB). We describe a low-tech transportable device that allows highly standardised measurement of flammability components of whole individuals or plant portions up to 70cm long. We measured the flammability of 34 spp. of different life forms (i.e. trees, shrubs, forbs and grasses). The device described here provides the first standard method for measuring flammability of whole individuals or plant portions in the field in an easy and practical way. By preserving the basic architectural arrangement of the measured shoots, this method is considerably more realistic than the measurement of small fragments. Our results suggest that our method can be used for species comparisons and for further studies of the relationships between flammability and other plant traits.