Prescribed Burn Literature

Recommended Reading

  • Madson, J. 1982. Where the sky began: Land of the tallgrass prairie. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin.
  • Pauly, Wayne R. 1988. How to manage small prairie fires. Madison, WI: Dane County Park Commission, 4318 Robertson Road, Madison, WI, 53714.
  • Pyne, S.J. 1982. Fire in America: cultural history of wildland and rural fire. Princeton University Press, Princeton, New Jersey.

Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry Prescribed Burn Manual 

This manual outlines the planning process which ensures that all prescribed burns in Ontario are conducted in a safe and efficient manner. This document described key prescribed burn planning concepts and some considerations for planning prescribed burns, based on the complexity of the burn.  Burn Manual (pdf)

Field Guide for Predicting Fire Behaviour in Ontario’s Tallgrass Prairie

This field guide was created to address the need for a more accurate estimate of fire behaviour in the tallgrass prairie of Southern Ontario. The new rate of spread model for tallgrass prairies detailed in this field guide is based on models developed in Australian grasslands and requires an estimate of the actual fuel moisture of the grass fuels. A tabular method for estimating fuel moisture content has also been introduced. Field Guide (pdf)

Tallgrass Prairie and Savanna Prescribed Fire Decision Support System

Developed by Dr. Brent Tegler, North-South Environmental Inc. with technical advice on prescribed burning from Fred Bruin, Fred V. Bruin Consulting and software development by Bruce Miller, Rules of Thumb Inc. Input. Editorial review was provided by Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources Staff Dave Heaman, Rick Carbino, Andrée Morneault, Wasyl Bakowsky and Mike Spaans.

Operational experience in tallgrass prairie and savanna prescribed burning in Canada is increasing as more areas across Southern Ontario have conducted prescribed burns. The Tallgrass Prairie and Savanna Prescribed Fire Decision Support System tool captures the knowledge and experience of the people who have planned, carried out and evaluated these fires and serves as a means to preserve and distribute rare expertise. View and Download here:
https://tallgrassontario.org/wp-site/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/BTeglerTallgrassPaper2003.pdf