This is a patch of wax myrtle after fire in 1997. Notice how the tops of the bushes aren’t burned. Often when these plants are allowed to move in fire won’t kill them and they must be roller chopped. 

So what is roller chopping? Well, it’s rather like mowing. A large cylinder with blades on it is dragged behind a bulldozer or tractor. 

This is a roller chopper I was using in April/May of 2000 to restore part of the Audubon prairie. You can still see this parked along one of the trails at the Kissimmee Prairie state park. Notice the blades running the length of the cylinder.

This is a view at healthy prairie. The next picture below shows the view in the other direction.

As you can see, there’s a lot of restoration to be done.

The tomato field where this chopping took place can be seen on Wikimapia Here.

This is what it looks like in action!

See the rollerchopped area in 2008 Here.