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If I could have only four tools to conduct prescribed burns or fight wildfires, they would be matches, a drip torch, an accurate weather forecast and a power sprayer with a water tank transported by a vehicle.

Many landowners already use prescribed fire for accomplishing their management goals. However, most landowners do not, due to fear of liability as well as a lack of knowledge, labor and equipment.

Fire is a natural process to which plant communities have adapted. Drought, which in recent years has been a major issue in the Southern Great Plains, is also a natural process to which these plant communities have adapted.

Fire creep in the context of prescribed burning can be defined as unnoticed smoldering of plant material that is thought to be extinguished. The buildup of thatch along the fireline can cause fire to "creep" across the firebreak, which can result in an escaped fire.

Coarse and volatile fuels cause problems when located too close to firebreaks during prescribed burns. Coarse fuels are woody materials that burn for a relatively long time, such as brush piles, snags, logs or stumps.

One of the most important parts of planning and implementing a prescribed burn is weather prediction. Weather prediction resources are available to help us make informed decisions about both fire and smoke behavior before we conduct prescribed burns.

This article was revised in 2006. Fire can be a wonderfully useful and flexible land management tool. So why don't more people use it? Why do so many people think fire is generally bad? Probably...