Controlled Burn at Woodland Park Today

Monday addendum: We ended up burning the west side of the woods based on wind conditions and plan to do the east side next weekend. The burn went fairly well; not great, but OK. We had no significant problems (like smoke blowing into apartments or on to Monona Drive). Despite nearly ideal wind and weather, part of the woods did not burn real well.

If you see smoke curling out of Woodland park today, do not be alarmed. A group of well-trained and qualified volunteers are conducting a controlled burn on the east side of the woods. The burn is planned to start about 11:30 a.m. We have a burn permit from the Monona Fire Department and we will be calling the dispatch when we begin and end. Someone stays on site as long as necessary.

It looks like conditions are in the appropriate ranges, if not ideal. Temps in the 40's, humidity falling to about 40%, and winds from the NW at 14 mph. It may be surprising, but the woods are not all that an easy a place to burn. The woods tend to be shady and damp and with the hill, you need a decent wind to carry the fire up the hill. It's generally a much safer, more predictable burn than a burn in a prairie where you generally have drier conditions and higher winds that can carry a fire away very quickly. On the other hand, greater caution is required at the end of the day to make sure all of the fire is really out.

Here is a very good tutorial on controlled burns from the folks at the Savanna Oak Foundation, Inc., "a nonprofit organization dedicated to the preservation and restoration of prairie and oak savanna habitats."

Doing a prescribed burn is a vital part of the ongoing, long-term effort to restore the woods at Woodland Park to a healthy oak savanna and oak woodland. Fire is critical to the growth of oak trees and also helps knock down many of the invasive plants. By the way, Driftless Land Stewards , the city-hired contractor, recently completed spraying for garlic mustard in the woods. I will be organizing a volunteer group in the next couple weeks to do a garlic mustard pull in Woodland Park. And the city council will be considering the management plan for the Park tomorrow night.