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Background: The 1996 Goseong forest fire, the largest recorded, prompted a debate on the potential for natural forest recovery, leading to the designation of a natural restoration research area. This study mainly aimed to demonstrate the forest's natural regenerative ability in a prefire Pinus densiflora forest that had been affected by a stand-replacing fire. To achieve this, the study tracked the key aspects of the succession process, specifically the formation of vertical structure and changes in species composition. Results: The regenerating vegetation initially passed through stages dominated by herbaceous and shrub layers, then differentiated into the canopy layer, eventually forming the early-stage forest after 20 years. Site A had developed into a forest with an average canopy height of 13.3 m and 73% coverage, while Site B was restored with a canopy height of 10 m and 27% coverage. Tree species of the genus Quercus dominated the canopy layer, occupying 99% of the tree basal area (from 17% prefire). Consequently, the prefire pine forest shifted to a Quercus-dominated forest after secondary succession. Pinus densiflora (83% of the prefire basal area) occupied only 1% after 20 years. Oak species became dominant from the initial stages of regeneration, playing a key role in shaping the early-stage forest structure. The species composition of the regenerating stands was already determined in the initial stage and closely resembled that of 20 years later. Since most species regenerated through resprouting, the understory remained dominated by pine forest companion species. Oak-associated species tended to increase in later stages. No invasive species were observed, and annual plants had low abundance. Conclusions: The study demonstrated the natural regenerative power of the forest following the fire, revealing that it takes around 20 years for a prefire pine forest to be restored an early-stage oak-dominated forest. Quercus trees, particularly Quercus variabilis and Quercus mongolica, regenerated rapidly immediately after fire, contributing to the development of the early-stage forest. Although this study was small in scale, it is a rare study conducted at permanent plots over 20 years, revealing the secondary succession process.

Question: How does vegetation develop during the initial period following severe wildfire in managed forests? Location: Southwestern Oregon, USA. Methods: In severely burned plantations, dynamics of (1) shrub, herbaceous, and cryptogam richness; (2) cover; (3) topographic, overstory, and site influences were characterized on two contrasting aspects 2 to 4 years following fire. Analysis of variance was used to examine change in structural layer richness and cover over time. Non-metric multidimensional scaling, multi-response permutation procedure, and indicator species analysis were used to evaluate changes in community composition over time. Results: Vegetation established rapidly following wildfire in burned plantations, following an initial floristics model of succession among structural layers. Succession within structural layers followed a combination of initial and relay floristic models. Succession occurred simultaneously within and among structural layers following wildfire, but at different rates and with different drivers. Stochastic (fire severity and site history) and deterministic (species life history traits, topography, and pre-disturbance plant community) factors determined starting points of succession. Multiple successional trajectories were evident in early succession. Conclusions: Mixed conifer forests are resilient to interacting effects of natural and human-caused disturbances. Predicting the development of vegetation communities following disturbances requires an understanding of the various successional components, such as succession among and within structural layers, and the fire regime. Succession among and within structural layers can follow different successional models and trajectories, occurs at different rates, and is affected by multiple interacting factors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]