Last years' grass burning?

[Waidewut]

When the snow on the fields has melted, every year Latvians in the countryside prepare for a special ritual- burning the last years' grass.
According to my countrymen this is the best way to get rid of the old, dry grass, they were too lazy to cut in autumn, despite this process often goes uncontrollable and burns not only the grass, but the nearby forest, your own home or even worse- your neighbour's.

I wanted to ask whether other people practice such things, or is this something typical Latvian, which would be an archaic instinct from the ancient clearance crop-growing times.

[Allenson]

In nearby Maine (USA), they burn the lowbush blueberry fields every few years to get rid of excess growth and to rejuvenate the bushes:

[Albion]

Very weird people. Here it'd set fire to the moors or hedgerows, so no.

[AussieScott]

Yep, we burn here.