HOW TO AVOID AND REMOVE HAZARDOUS PLANTS & CREATE A FIRE SAFE GARDEN:
1) Click on 2 or 3 of the links below to get many ideas on how to organize your garden for fire safety and avoid hazardous plants. Some of the items have additional embedded links.
2) At the end of this document are a series of very brief links with information on how to fix the most common issues that are cited as hazards in home inspections and to avoid insurance cancellation.
3) Keep in mind that any tree or shrub or dense plant may be dangerous in a fire and that dense shrubs and trees close to your home may ignite your home and prevent you from evacuating.
4) Examples of extremely dangerous plants and trees include: Juniper, Eucalyptus, Bamboo, & large or dense conifers, such as pine, cedar, cypress, spruce, fir, acacia, bay laurel and plants with high oil content including sage, rosemary and many others: Plants and trees near homes or hanging over roofs are exceptionally dangerous. Click for more comprehensive lists:
MANY ADDITONAL REFERENCE ARTICLES & LINKS FROM MARIN FIRESAFE AND OTHER SOURCES:
has a checklist where you can specify the type of plants to create a fire safe garden. Very brief poster: plant and garden information 3 minute U TUBE video (skip the commercial in the beginning) ____________________________________________________________________
A SERIES OF VERY BRIEF TIPS FOR GARDEN FIRE SAFETY.
0-5 feet zone: Keep this area next to structures clear of combustible plants and materials to prevent ember ignition and direct flame contact. Avoid direct contact: Don’t let plants touch your home’s siding, windows, eaves, vents, or decks to minimize fire risks. Avoid evergreens with high resin content, such as pines and junipers. Choose plants with low sap or resin content, low maintenance requirements, and that grow close to the ground. Opt for deciduous trees and shrubs that shed their leaves annually. Look for ground covers with thick, fleshy leaves like aloe or succulent plants. Moist, supple leaves & low amounts of sap, resin, oil, or wax make plants less likely to ignite. Plants high in waxes, oils, and resins can be more flammable. Growth structure: Open-growth plants may have lower fire risk than dense ones. Growth speed: Fast-growing plants need more space and maintenance. Height potential: Know how tall a plant can get to ensure it fits your space. Shedding habits: Plants that shed bark or leaves need frequent cleanup to reduce fire hazards. Water & fertilize wisely: Good watering habits and appropriate fertilization keep plants healthy and less prone to fires. Regular pruning & cleanup: Keeping your plants trimmed and your garden tidy reduces fire risks. Drip irrigation & mulching: Use drip irrigation for efficient watering and choose non-combustible mulch like rock to prevent fire hazards near your home. Avoid combustible mulches: Combustible mulches near the home create an additional fire risk. Keep flammable mulches away from the foundation to reduce the risk of ember ignition. Compost as a safer alternative: Mixing compost into the soil around plants is a less flammable option than combustible mulches. Manage shedding: Regularly remove fallen leaves and branches, especially from aging plants, to prevent them from becoming fire fuel. Open structure pruning: Create an open growth structure through pruning to prevent fire from climbing plants. Height management: Keep an eye on plant height and prune as needed to maintain a manageable size and reduce fire spread potential. Pruning techniques: Apply to from the start, including at planting, to ensure healthy and fire-resistant growth. All plants will burn under the right conditions, regardless of how they are classified (“fire resistant”, “fire safe”, “firewise”, etc). Growing conditions and maintenance can have a greater impact on the flammability of plants than the species itself. You can create a fire-resilient landscape by following these three simple concepts: Besides taking into account the plant's physiological needs (water amount, sunlight tolerance, soil properties, etc), this theory also considers the surrounding landscape, such as buildings, fences, sheds, or patios. For example, closer to Zone 0 a small or slow-growing shrub would be more appropriate than a large one. In a drier or stressed environment, a plant may have stunted growth and accumulate dead parts, while one with a good water supply will have a strong growth and hold leaves for a longer period of time. This can result in the same species being fire-resilient in one environment and very combustible in another. Here are some questions to consider when selecting plants for your home: Does this plant shed bark, leaves, flowers, etc.? What time of year does the shedding occur? A plant that sheds bark or branches is likely to need more regular maintenance-related cleanup to reduce fuel accumulations on the ground. A plant that has a big leaf or needle drop will result in the need for more maintenance-related cleanup on the property, on the roof, and in rain gutters How dense are the foliage and branches, especially closer to the ground? A plant that is more densely structured can capture embers and may be more likely to ignite. It will also be more likely to be easily ignited from a surface fire. What are the water and sunlight needs for the plant? How fast does the plant grow? A plant that grows quickly may exceed growth expectations and require greater maintenance. Does the plant have waxes, oils, or resins? A plant with more waxes, oils, and resins will likely be more flammable and release more energy when it burns. Native plants, pollinator friendly, or drought-tolerant plants can be good choices for those labeled qualities, but these features don’t directly translate to fire-resistance. By increasing the spacing between plants and groups of plants, a fire can be limited or stopped from spreading. Plant spacing includes both horizontal and vertical clearance between plants, as well as between plants and structures. Walking paths and gravel areas can be used between groups of plants to increase their spacing. Whether a plant ignites depends more on pruning, maintenance, and cleanup than on what type of plant it is. Some plants, such as lavender, may initially have lush, non-woody growth, and then several years later become woody and choked with dead material. Other plants may develop a dead thatch layer under a green surface that is highly combustible. Prune plants to provide horizontal & vertical space in your garden and surrounding structures Clean the understory of plants and trim the branches closest to the ground Irrigate plants appropriately Plants with big leaves or needle drop may result in more maintenance
HAZARDOUS & FIRE SAFE PLANTS