Fire is essential to the health of a longleaf pine forest. It removes the clutter of underbrush and scrub oaks and replaces it with picturesque golden grass.

A group of about 40 people attended the field day and listened to experts talk about the longleaf pine, the federally endangered red cockaded woodpecker and the Safe Harbor program.

They sat beneath tents and listened to speakers who were interrupted only by the occasional whinny of a horse or the faint roar of a plane from Pope Air Force Base.

The spectators took a hay ride to get a better look at parts of the land. Folks sat on bales of hay and rode behind a tractor that pulled two trailers.

The hay ride caused some people to get a little bit closer to nature than they intended. Several people had to pick themselves up off the forest floor when the ride went out of control and dumped riders over the sides.

As it crested a hill near the end of the trip, the wagon began to pick up speed as it went down the hill, and the driver lost control. People began to yell and wail.

As the vehicle continued to gather speed, the tractor began swerving back and forth. The tractor made a sharp right turn and the front right corner of the trailer struck the back left tractor wheel. The whole ride came to an abrupt halt.

The quick stop sent several people tumbling to the ground. There were some anxious moments as some of the people pulled themselves up and checked their extremities. No one seemed seriously injured.

Despite the mishap, people seemed to be in good spirits. Many of them entertained themselves by talking about the experience as they walked back up the hill. There were even some jokes and smiles.

If people went home with a few bruises, they also came away with more knowledge about the longleaf forest ecosystem.

慡omething Special Here?P>

Dick Webb, chairman of the Walthour-Moss Foundation Board of Directors, welcomed the gathering. Over his shoulder, members of the crowd could see the burial place of Ginny and Pappy Moss, who donated the land to start the foundation.

Pappy Moss died in 1976, and Ginny died last year. She gave her last gift to the foundation in her will.

揥e抳e got something special here,?Webb said.

Larry Early, the author of 揕ooking for Longleaf: The Fall and Rise of an American Forest,?talked about the history of the forest and gave some explanation of how the ecosystem works. He told members of the audience to look at the forest around them. The longleaf pines have wide spaces between them allowing the sunlight to shine on the golden Savannah beneath.

In other parts of the forest, people could see the blackened and charred pine straw from a recent burn.

揟his is what a well-managed longleaf forest looks like,?he said. 揟his forest has a history. It also has a future.?P>

The longleaf forest thrives on fire, Early said. Twenty years ago, the type of forest that can be seen on the Walthour-Moss land would not have been common at all, he said.

Turpentine production, over- logging and fire suppression tactics practiced by forest managers decades ago nearly destroyed the forest, he said.

There was a time when the longleaf pine forest stretched from southeastern Virginia down to Lake Okeechobee in Florida and west to parts of Texas.

The original settlers called it the 揋reat Piney Woods,?Early said, who likes that name. It fits in with the mythology of early America, he said. People know about the Great Plains because of the many stories about cattle drives and cowboys and Indians.

揟hey had all those things in the South,?Early said. 揑t抯 just as much an area as the Great Plains.?P>

People could travel for days and never see anything different beside the longleaf pine forest, he said. But that all began to change. The problem, Early said, was that the forest was just too productive.

揟he area was one of the most economically productive forests in the South,?he said.

慡tump Orchard?P>

The first threat to the forest was the turpentine industry. The way the industry harvested the turpentine was to cut a huge block out of the tree and cut another gouge above it that funneled the turpentine into the cavity.

Not only did it damage the tree, it also opened it up to insect infestation and disease. The weakened tree could be blown over by wind. It also made the trees vulnerable to fire. Fire hardly bothers healthy long-leafs.

Lumber harvesting had often been done, but only near accessible rivers. When the railroad came in, it changed all that. Much of the forest was clear-cut. The forest was 搈ercilessly?and 搈echanically?removed, Early said.

Foresters would leave nothing but a 搒tump orchard,?he said.

Another problem was that cattle and hogs were allowed to wander through the forest. The heavy cattle hooves destroyed saplings, and the pigs dug up and ate roots.

揟hey were a real menace,?he said.

Now, a forest that had once been 92 million acres is down to 3 million and is fragmented into pieces, Early said.

慒ire Forest?P>

The main sin was fire prevention, Early said. Settlers had learned from the Indians how to use fire to keep the forest healthy. But foresters from outside came in and said that fire was bad.

揥ith no fire, you抳e got no forest,?said Early. 揙r it抯 a different kind of forest. It抯 imprisoned by thickets of scrub oaks. Fire keeps the forest open.?P>

People even used to call it 搕he fire forest,?he said.

These days, there is some hope and optimism for the forest. Public lands are being managed better than ever, and private lands are making progress. Pine straw harvesting has helped people make money from the long- leaf.

Education helped turn it around. People began to learn about what the forest looks like after a burn and they found it more attractive.

揑t showed what the longleaf should look like,?Early said.

He抯 worried that people will move here from cities and bring their fear of fire with them. It抯 up to the audience not to let that happen, he said.

揘o fire,?he said, 搉o forest.?P>