Ecology of a Cracker Childhood

Fire is a recurring motif throughout Ray’s discussions of the longleaf pine forests, serving as both a force for destruction and rejuvenation. The flatlands where longleaf pine grows are often prone to severe thunderstorms, and lightning often sets the pine trees ablaze. In Chapter 4, Ray first connotes this fire with violence and destruction: “Once lightning struck, the fire might burn slowly through the grasses for weeks, miles at a time […] If the [pine] seeds began to grow, lightning would burn them” (36). However, longleaf pine slowly begins to adapt in spite of fires. The trees develop deep root systems before quickly growing during the seasons when the lightning is rarer, as well as thick bark that can withstand fire. Though fire is typically thought of as a threat to forests, longleaf pine instead evolves to thrive within the harsh environment, lending the trees the nickname: “the pine that fire built” (38).

The animals and vegetation that live within longleaf pine forests have also adapted to live with the ongoing fires. Many of the forests’ species—such as indigo snakes, rabbits, and lizards—take shelter from the fire within gopher tortoises’ burrows. However, the fire also plays a crucial role in many species’ survival, as the burnings prevent “dense understory vegetation” (172) from overtaking the forests.