The research objective was to examine the effects of fall and spring burning in a basin big sagebrush/Idaho fescue-bluebunch wheatgrass plant community, including fuel consumption and plant species' responses to fire treatments, and to reduce western juniper density [5,6]. Prefire data for the fall fire were collected in July and August 1987, and fall burning was conducted on 25 September 1987. Postfire data for the fall fire were collected in May and June 1988 (postfire year 1) and June and July 1989 (postfire year 2). For the spring prescribed fire, prefire data were collected in April and May 1988, and spring burning was conducted on 24 May 1988. Postfire data for the spring fire were collected in June and July 1989 (postfire year 1); data were not collected for the spring fire in postfire year 2. Each burn unit was 30 × 50 m in area [5,6]. Both burns were ignited with drip torches using a strip-head firing pattern. Overall, pretreatment fuel loads ranged from 22.3 to 53.5 tons/acre (5-12 Mg/ha). Fuel loads averaged 46.8 tons/acre (10.5 Mg/ha) in fall treatment units and 27.8 tons/acre (6.2 Mg/ha) in spring treatment units. Large amounts of herbaceous fuels (>13.4 tons/acre (3.0 Mg/ha)) were present on both burn units