The fields of Cades Cove are renowned for its iconic pastoral setting. Each year the National Park Service utilize controlled burns to reduce woody encroachment into the fields, help perpetuate native herbaceous species, reduce exotic plant species, and maintain the historic landscape of the cove.
Without the disturbance of the controlled burns, the grasses will succeed to woody vegetation and the fields would succumb to forests within a few decades. The burns are done during fall to early winter in order to avoid impacts to wildlife and nesting birds and are done during optimal weather conditions during the dryer periods of the year.
