From Barry Bruton, via Facebook:
Steve, here’s a question that I always wondered about: The San Bois mountains (in eastern OK), which means literally ‘without trees’, are described by Nuttall and others as being virtually treeless. These ranges are now pretty well covered by forests. What triggered that change?
Steve: The end of regular, repeated burning. Somewhere Nuttall talks about “the annual conflagration…”
Barry Bruton: And that sparks a thousand more questions. Looking forward to this!