Impacts of Fuel Reduction Treatments on the Ecology of Wild Blueberry (Vaccinium uliginosum) and Cranberry (Vaccinium vitis-idaea) in Interior Alaska
Amundsen, F.. 2026.
Abstract
Rising temperatures in boreal regions have increased wildfire activity and area burned,
affecting berry species that are crucial to the subsistence practices of northern communities. This
increase in fire activity requires proactive fuel management to reduce wildfire risks and create
operational space for firefighters. Fuel treatments also provide areas where people harvest berries
such as Vaccinium uliginosum and Vaccinium vitis-idaea, which are important for both subsistence
and wildlife. By altering aboveground light availability and belowground nutrient conditions, fuel
treatments can modify controls over plant growth and reproduction. We investigated how two
common fuel treatments, hand-thinning and mechanical thinning, influence vegetative growth,
flowering, and berry production across 10 sites in Interior Alaska. Responses were speciesspecific, V. uliginosum exhibited increased vegetative cover and flowering across both treatments,
but fruiting was difficult to assess due to low sample size. Vaccinium vitis-idaea showed increased
flower and berry production in hand-thinned stands. For both species, flowering and berry
production increased with light availability. Overall, fuel treatments influenced plant growth and
reproduction but did not alter allocation patterns or foliar traits in either species. These findings
highlight light availability, soil nutrients, and soil organic layer moisture as being the most
important drivers of reproductive response, varying by species, and can inform management
strategies that better support culturally and ecologically important berry species in boreal forests.
