Recovery of Acacia auriculiformis from fire damage.

Abstract

An assessment of damage and recovery of Acacia auriculiformis in a provenance trial at the Universiti Pertanian Malaysia was undertaken following an accidental surface fire on 27 July 1991. The trial had been established in November 1989 with 7 Queensland and 15 Northern Territory (both Australia) provenances and 6 Papua New Guinea provenances. Foliar damage was assessed the day after the fire, and observations on resprouting were made 8 weeks after the fire. Results showed significant differences (P <0.05) between provenances in their ability to recover vegetatively after being affected by different levels of foliage scorch, with the 1 hr. S. Balamuk (16103) provenance from Papua New Guinea being the best. The ability to resprout is possibly a result of the insulating properties of the bark, which protects dormant buds present underneath it. Results provide a basis for selection of suitable provenances for future tree breeding for fire resistance, and for fire management and silvicultural treatments of this species.