Controlling bush encroachment with fire in the savanna areas of South Africa.

Abstract

The savanna areas of South Africa can be divided into the moist and arid savanna types according to the availability of soil moisture. Bush encroachment is a serious veld management problem in all the savanna areas and veld burning is a potential eradication technique in situations with an adequate grass cover to support an intense fire. In the moist savannas fire per se can be used to control bush encroachment but in the arid savannas it has the role of maintaining trees and shrubs at an available height and in acceptable state for browsing animals. Intense head fires applied at the end of the dormant season are used for bush eradication. The frequency of burning is relatively high in the moist savannas but is very low in the arid savannas, being usually limited to years with above average rainfall when adequate grass fuel loads can be accumulated. Veld burning provides an attractive economic and energy saving technique of solving the problem of bush encroachment in the savanna areas of South Africa.

Keywords: arid savanna; browsing; burning; bush encroachment; control; fire; fires; frequency of burning; fuel load; grass cover; management; savanna; soil moisture; south africa; technique; veld burning; veld management