Why Native Grasses Matter After Sandhills Wildfires?

By Scout Nelson

The year 2026 was the largest wildfire year on record in Nebraska. More than 1 million acres of rangeland burned across the state, creating major challenges for producers and rural communities. One of the largest events was the Morrill Fire, which occurred in March 2026 in the southwestern Sandhills. It became the largest single wildfire recorded in Nebraska history.

The University of Nebraska and Nebraska Extension continued monitoring the recovery process throughout the season. Their observations showed that many native perennial plants began recovering naturally after the wildfire. This recovery provided valuable information for landowners who were concerned about restoring burned rangeland and managing exposed sandy areas.

Immediately after the fire, many producers questioned whether they should reseed perennial grasses or aerially plant annual cover crops such as rye to stabilize moving sand. Research showed that healthy native perennial grasses and forbs usually recover without reseeding when they are present before a wildfire. Native plant communities in the Sandhills have adapted to fire over thousands of years and are naturally able to recover from these events.

Fire has long been a natural part of the Great Plains ecosystem. Historical estimates suggested that fires occurred every four to five years in parts of the Sandhills and every fifteen to thirty years in parts of the Nebraska Panhandle. Because of these conditions, native grasslands developed strong recovery abilities. Many native plants store most of their biomass below ground. Their roots and growth points remain protected beneath the soil surface and allow new growth when moisture and favorable weather return.

Research conducted by Dr. Dave Wedin at the Halsey National Forest following a dormant-season wildfire in 2006 highlighted the stability of Sandhills landscapes. The study found that the average sand movement across several locations was less than 0.7 centimeters. Results showed that extensive root systems beneath the surface helped keep dunes stable and reduced large-scale sand movement after wildfire.

Although bare ground across large areas raised concerns, reseeding during a dry year such as 2026 would likely have provided little benefit. Extremely dry conditions continued until early June, making successful seed germination difficult. Annual cover crops planted by air would likely have struggled to establish and could have competed with native plants for limited soil moisture.

Perennial grass reseeding also faced challenges. Native grass seeds are expensive, and drought conditions often reduce successful establishments. Under such dry conditions, many newly planted seeds would likely have failed to germinate. For this reason, experts suggested that natural recovery remained the most practical and cost-effective approach.

The experience of 2026 demonstrated the resilience of Sandhills plant communities. Healthy native vegetation has survived wildfires and droughts for centuries and continues to recover when managed properly. Landowners who maintain healthy rangelands before a fire often see strong natural regrowth afterward.

Researchers continued studying wildfire recovery during the growing season. Dr. Dirac Twidwell and a team at Nebraska created wildfire.unl.edu, a website that provides data on Nebraska wildfires from the past forty years. Using satellite remote sensing technology, researchers can evaluate recovery patterns based on factors such as fire timing, fire size, and environmental conditions.

Historical observations showed encouraging results. In many Sandhills wildfire areas, perennial grass cover returned to pre-burn levels within one to two years. While fire and drought created significant challenges during 2026, healthy plant communities continued responding as rainfall returned.

This information is shared through the Nebraska Recovery Roundup, a Nebraska Extension effort that provides practical guidance for producers and communities recovering from wildfire.

Photo Credit: pexels-jeffrey-czum