FORESTS

Abstract

Swift found that, with the exception of phacelia (Phacelia brachyloba) and wild canterbury-bells (Phacelia minor) which utilize ammonium (NH4), most chaparral fire specialists prefer to utilize nitrogen in the forra of nitrate (NO3). Moreover, she discovered that all fire specialists with the exception of whispering bells (Emmenanth penduliflora) had a low photosynthetic capacity and therefore were less effective than other plants at using nitrogen obtained through photosynthesis. Overall, these findings indicate that these species need periods of high nitrogen availability, like after fires, to germinate and become established.