Marin IJ Articles

Yes, you can have a beautiful and fire-smart landscape

• Fay Mark

• So far, our winter has not been a significantly wet one and the threat of wildfire may be on your mind.  Since fire knows no boundaries, cross-jurisdictional, multi-agency efforts are underway to develop strategies on wildfire preparedness.  On your own home front, various tasks to protect your property require planning and maintenance throughout the year and should be an on-going top priority as we continue to experience less predictable weather. 

  First and foremost, work with your local fire officials to know your evacuation routes and clear them of vegetation. Help ensure maneuvering space for firefighters.  

  During a wildfire, embers fly around in the air, and can land anywhere. A well-maintained landscape is a valuable resource to discourage embers that land on your property from igniting combustible material that can drive fire towards your home.  Now is a great time to develop a relationship with your property.  On a pleasant weather day, spend some time inspecting your garden.  Grab a piece of paper and a pen, or your favorite electronic device, and take notes.

  

  Fire-wise thoughtful pruning and spacing between plants. Photo Credit: EBMUD

  

  Dry leaf litter in the rain gutter or on the roof is combustible. Photo Credit: S For Cleanup

  Start with the perimeter around your home and carefully inspect the first five feet.  Look for potential fuel, which is anything that will burn.  A few examples include dry or dead vegetation, wood piles, straw and wood brooms, natural fiber door mats, flammable mulch, fencing, and furnishings.  If the material is something you could use to start a campfire, remove it.  Also look for tall plants that are under eaves, against your house, or under a window.  Is there roof or gutter litter that needs removing? Now, take a second lap and inspect your property beyond five feet.  Consider the size of the shrubs and trees on your property.  Do they need to be pruned?  Are they spaced so you can walk around each shrub or plant?  Do you have shrubs under a tree with low-growing tree branches?  Are there tree branches within ten feet of the ground, your roof or chimney? Do you live on a hillside with plants that need to be pruned or removed? Allow for vertical and horizontal space between shrubs and trees, especially on slopes.

  We know that this can be an overwhelming task, so don’t get discouraged.  Keep taking notes.

  

  Tools you can use to maintain your fire-smart landscaping. Photo Credit: Pleuntje

  Now that you have your list, play your favorite music, sit in a comfy chair and take some time to plan how you want to tackle the list.  There will be some obvious, easy, quick things to do like planning one day each month to spend time clearing dry vegetation.  Other things take more time and expense, like adding pebbles or crushed gravel around the first 5’ perimeter of your home, adding compost with herbaceous well-irrigated low-growing plants and succulents.  Next tackle tasks like clearing and replacing old or overgrown shrubs, or pruning trees with branches that are too close to your home, the ground, the roof or chimney.

  If you live on or adjacent to a hillside, please be aware that removing vegetation without replacement could lead to unintended consequences such as erosion or habitat disruption.  Vegetation helps to stabilize a hillside and if the vegetation is native to California, may be providing habitat to a variety of animal species and ecological value to beneficial insects.  If you cannot identify the plants on your hillside, ask for help from your local nursery or the Marin Master Gardener Help Desk at the UC Cooperative Extension in Novato. 

  Reading articles and attending seminars will help you to build knowledge and be better equipped to prioritize tasks.  The UC Marin Master Gardeners offer monthly fire-smart landscaping presentations and our website provides in-depth information on planning and maintenance to help you create and maintain your beautiful, fire-smart landscape.

  As time goes on, you will find that maintenance will become routine and probably less demanding.  Try to commit to doing a few things each month, but please, start today.