Fire can be dangerous and scary .And forest fires are about the scariest. What could be worse for trees than fire ?

　　Yet thought they are scary to see, forest fires are a natural part of the life of a forest .They even help keep the forest healthy. Fire clears away underbrush and makes the soil become rich . It makes open spaces for young trees to grow and clears the way for sun-loving shrubs that provide food and homes for many animals.

　　Illnesses and insects kill more trees each year than fire does. A healthy burn destroys them. Though a fire will kill some trees , many remain alive. Most old trees have lived through many fires. Some trees even need the heat of a fire to open their seed pods .

　　As foresters learn more about how fire helps forests ,they are changing the way they fight forest fires .Instead of trying to put out every fire , they now often let natural fires burn.They're learned that letting small fires clean up the dry brush lowers the risk of a really big fire that could get out of control.

　　Of course ,it's still important to put out unnatural fires that people stare or that get too near homes or towns .Friend or enemy,fire is always something to respect.

　　火是危险和可怕的。森林火灾是最可怕的。还有什么比火对树更糟吗?

　　然而虽然他们看起来很可怕,但森林火灾是森林的自然生活的一部分。他们甚至帮助保持森林的健康。火可以清理灌木丛,使土壤变得富有。它为小树成长开放了空间和为灌木扫清了道路,为许多动物提供食物和住房。

　　疾病和昆虫比火灾每年害死更多的树木。一个健康的烧毁灭了这些。尽管火会烧死一些树木,许多仍然活着。大多数老树经历了许多火灾。甚至一些树需要的热量火打开他们的豆荚。

　　在林业工作者了解火力帮助森林,他们改变了森林大火作斗争。而不是试图扑灭每一次的火,他们现在经常让自然火燃烧。他们知道要降低让小火清理灌木丛的风险，因为有可能火会失控。

　　当然,它扑灭人们所关注的或太靠近房屋或城镇的自然火灾仍然是重要的。朋友或敌人,火总是要尊重的。