Reply #8: They do need fire

[ben_meyers]

Episodic surface fires have swept through giant sequoia groves for many centuries. Nearly all of the largest and
oldest sequoias have huge basal fire scars that bear witness to these ancient flames. Although park naturalists
have 1ong accepted that fire was a frequent visitor to sequoia groves before arrival of Anglo-American settlers
around 1850, real concern about negative effects of suppressed natural fire regimes did not arise until the early
1960s. Ecologists noticed that there were few sequoia seedlings or saplings within the groves, while the density
of other shade-tolerant tree species was increasing. Research suggested that elimination of episodic fires during
the past century had also eliminated necessary conditions for sequoia regeneration; sequoia seeds germinate and
establish best in mineral soils exposed by surface burns (Harvey et al. 1980). Concern about changes in the
structure of sequoia-mixed conifer forests was an important stimulus to reintroducing fire to some groves as
early as 1968. Many prescribed burn areas within the groves now have abundant sequoia seedlings and saplings.
http://www.ltrr.arizona.edu/~tswetnam/tws-pdf/Yosemite.pdf