Interesting article. And very sad, to hear that new trees are having a difficult time getting established. I'm not sure where Cuyamaca is, but I know it's up north of here. That fire must have been horrific.
On the subject of new tree growth, a friend and I hiked, several weeks ago, from Dawson Saddle up to the PCT, then down the PCT to Islip Saddle. The trail passes through a lot of burned area, can't remember the name of that fire, or how long ago that one was. I think it's the one that had some rumored occult beginnings, down the hill south of there. But, on the positive side, we observed lots of new growth, including zillions of baby trees in that area. They came up on their own, and are looking pretty healthy, considering how little moisture they get during the summer.
I didn't know about Ceanothus and nitrogen being released into the soil. There are hundreds of varieties of ceanothus, one of which is the plant we refer to as "wild lilac", which blooms so profusely in the spring in LPC. Another is the spiny one, don't know the common name, which is more low growing but is a favorite of our local deer. That one is pretty overgrown on the PCT, the last 2 miles from Little Jimmy campground down to Islip Saddle. I wore capri pants that day, and wished I had worn long jeans. Still a beautiful hike though, about 8 miles.
