对长叶松的爱

开放的澳门威尼斯人游戏冠，充满活力的林下植被

长叶林具有独特的外观. Their trees grow far apart, with grasses and wildflowers flourishing in the spaces between them.

These open, grassy forests are filled with thousands of species found nowhere else on the planet. Roughly 1,000种不同的植物生长在其中, including orchids, meadowbeauties, sundews, 还有捕蝇草. 动物也在长叶松中茁壮成长. 史前地鼠龟, 小扁平林蝾螈, 红嘴啄木鸟, 无数其他珍稀野生动物都和谐地生活在这些森林里. 有很多日常生活中的物种把森林称为家, 太像狐松鼠了, bobwhite quail, butterflies, and deer.

“这是北美最具生物多样性的系统之一. 只是在高质量的长叶澳门威尼斯人游戏的地面覆盖上, 你可以在四分之一英亩内种植100多种植物,Carol Denhof说, 长叶联盟的主席, a nonprofit organization dedicated to longleaf pine ecosystem restoration.

拥有如此高的生物多样性, 难怪会有一场集体运动来重新种植这些松澳门威尼斯人游戏.

与火的亲密关系

火是长叶松林茁壮成长的必要条件. 而不是经常成为头条新闻的无法控制的破坏性野火. The fires these forests need are the low-intensity controlled burns that help to rejuvenate the landscape.

作为正在进行的森林管理的关键部分, 控制火灾通常每两到五年规划一次, 取决于地形. 结果与野火截然不同. Healthy trees tolerate the fire well, and the understory is fire-adapted and benefits greatly.

“你在其中一片森林里生火, 在短短几天内, 你看到绿色的芽从草中长出来. 在某种程度上，这就像重生。.

These regular fires also help to prevent out-of-control fires from happening by reducing the buildup of fuels — grass, shrubs, downed trees, leaves, 还有容易燃烧的针.

“火是减少野火的一个非常重要的部分,” says Lisa Lord, 她是长叶联盟的环境保护项目主任. “我们想按自己的条件燃烧, not when lightning strikes a tree and then all of a sudden the entire stand combusts because you haven’t done any prescribed burns.”

令人惊讶的是，植物并不是唯一适应低强度火灾的物种. Many animal species actually seek shelter in the large burrows created by the 在长叶松中安家的地鼠龟.

历史上的关键时刻

随着欧洲移民进入这一地区, 长叶松提供了两种不同的关键资源:松脂和木材. The pitch was turned into tar and turpentine, used in colonial times to waterproof ships. Harvested lumber went into the construction of homes, ships, and railroad tracks. The groundwork for modern life in this area relied heavily on these trees.

With longleaf pine forests as far as the eye could see, the resource probably seemed limitless.

不幸的是，事实并非如此.

As the trees were cut, the land often transitioned into farmland or urban spaces. Some cleared longleaf forests were taken over by — or replanted with — other pines such as slash and loblolly, particularly since fire was actively suppressed in the newly settled land.

Though much of this landscape has been lost, a massive effort is now underway to save it. 植澳门威尼斯人游戏节基金会已经确定了 美国东南部 作为一个需要重新造林的地区. 最新的科学和数据表明，该地区是一个优先考虑的地区, 在哪里植澳门威尼斯人游戏可以产生最大的影响. That’s why the Foundation is partnering with organizations across the Southeast — including 长叶联盟 — to plant millions of new seedlings to help restore the longleaf pine ecosystem.

面对不确定未来的韧性

As climate change, water shortages, 其他危机继续挑战着我们的自然世界, 长叶松长势强劲，确保人们能够茁壮成长. “我们正在恢复这个标志性的生态系统, and that provides all of these different cobenefits to people and to nature,” explains Lord.

One of those benefits is clean water, including drinking water for millions of residents. “A healthy forest system helps filter the water in our aquifers and groundwater. 它可以防止径流中的水分流失，”登霍夫说. “You want water to soak into the ground, versus just rolling off like on a parking lot. Even a pasture doesn’t absorb the same amount of water that a forest with native ground cover can.”

Another benefit is carbon capture to help reduce the effects of climate change. 长叶松的平均寿命为250年. That means they’re capable of storing more carbon for longer periods of time, 为我们所有人改善环境.

And then there’s the resistance to fire, drought, and hurricane-force winds. As natural disasters intensify with climate change, they threaten to destroy the landscape. 但长叶松仍然扎根于地面, their adaptability allowing them to weather these extremes and ensure the future of the forest.

随着对这棵澳门威尼斯人游戏的共同热情不断增长, more and more landowners are getting involved in efforts to restore longleaf pine forests. Lord sees it first-hand when she works with people interested in planting these trees for the first time.

“他们被长叶澳门威尼斯人游戏叶的神秘感迷住了, 所有酷炫的野生动物都是其中的一部分, and the fire. 他们喜欢这个故事，”她说. 真的，他们怎么能不呢?