Variation in the age at first flowering for seedlings of 15 fire-killed shrubs and trees on sandstone outcrops and sand plains in central and north-western Queensland.

Abstract

Knowledge of the age at which seedlings begin to flower and set seed (i.e. primary juvenile period) is required for understanding the ecology and appropriate management of fire-killed species (i.e. obligate seeders) in frequently burnt landscapes. This paper documents the variation in age at first flowering by 15 fire-killed shrubs of sandstone and sand plain woodlands of central and north-west Queensland. In only two species, Acacia acradenia and Acacia gonoclada, were more than half of the individuals examined beginning to produce seed within 3 or 4 years of post-fire germination. Three species had not begun any flowering or seeding within 3 years of germination (Acacia hammondii, Acacia monticola and Acacia shirleyi).