KULA, Maui — The Kula Forest Reserve and Polipoli Springs State Park will reopen to the public tomorrow after a months-long effort to clear 800 fire-damaged trees to make the area safe for hikers, hunters and other users.

A wildlife ignited by a discarded cigarette burned more than 2,300 acres between Jan. 23 and Feb. 5.

The forest and park reopening by the state Department of Land and Natural Resources includes authorization of special hunting seasons to reduce populations of feral pigs and sheep before reforestation efforts begin later in the year.

Public access will be allowed starting at 6 a.m. tomorrow, but DLNR is reminding people the forest is still recovering and burned areas are still fragile, so they should stay on trails and roads.

Crews from the agency's Division of Forestry and Wildlife and contractor Hi Tree Services worked for four months to remove hazardous trees to clear trails and road corridors, and mill salvageable lumber.

The next step is a reforestation scheme that includes planting of 207,000 tree seedlings in severely burned areas totaling 1,500 acres, said DLNR interim chairwoman Laura Thielen.

That effort is expected to begin in mid-November, weather permitting.

Before the planting can start, foresters are working to control invasive plant species and stabilize soils prone to erosion by promoting growth of ground cover, Thielen said. Herbicide has been applied to noxious weeds, such as blackberry, on 175 acres in the burned areas.

Contractor JBH Fencing was hired to install 5 miles of fencing along the makai boundaries of Kula Forest Reserve to keep out cattle and goats from lower areas.

Nine tons of grass seed for ground cover and erosion control have arrived and will be sown in late September, Thielen said.

Native shrubs and trees such as koa and 'ohi'a to replace those lost in the fire will be planted in larger numbers, enhancing habitat for native birds. Redwoods, which grow tall and attract fog condensation, also will be planted in the forest.

Plants used in the reforestation project will come from a Maui nursery, Thielen said, with redwoods supplied by nurseries in California and Oregon.

To reduce the feral pig population before the reforestation effort starts, DLNR is allowing a special two-month pig hunting season in September and October, with hunting days on weekends and state holidays.

This is in addition to regular game mammal hunting within the Kula Forest Reserve (Units C and E) that also resumes tomorrow.

The bag limit is one pig per hunter per day, with no season limit. Hunters are required to wear blaze orange, and hunting dogs are not allowed.

DLNR also is authorizing a special yearlong hunt starting tomorrow for feral sheep that have been reported in forest reserve. Hunters can harvest sheep regardless of numbers or the animal's gender on legal game mammal hunting days.