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It all starts with a defensible space of 100 ft.

By Ronna Adler / Special To The Sierra Star

(Updated: Wednesday, June 18, 2008, 5:11 PM)

Unless by some miracle we receive a sizable late rain, we are entering a perilous fire season. One of the major things that you can do to protect your home is to set up a defensible space that is landscaped. This refers to the area around your home that would help firemen to resist a serious fire. That is where you want your well watered landscaping to be. The key here is landscaping that is consistently watered by an automatic irrigation system. By consistent, I mean three to four times a week.

Plants that have been consistently watered have a lower flammability because of the moisture content in their leaves which resist fire. Evergreen plants are more fire resistant than deciduous plants, because their leaves store moisture even in the winter. So place evergreen shrubs and perennial flowers close to your residence, while deciduous shrubs like lilac and forsythia should be planted at least 40 feet away from your house. Trees also should be planted 30 to 40 feet from your home, depending on the size. It is important to do your homework and know what size a plant or tree gets. Most plant nurseries have the characteristics of a plant listed on a card with the plants. If not, ask the staff.

Succulents, for instance, are very fire resistant because of all of the moisture that they store in their fleshy leaves. Also, mature plantings are more fire resistant than young plants, plus the leaves of deciduous plants are more fleshy, and more fire resistant than evergreen plants in most cases. The characteristics of fire resistant plants are: supple leaves, water-like sap, thicker bark, high moisture content, and low resin content. A mature, consistently watered landscape is more fire resistant than even bare dirt. This is not to say that in a raging inferno of a roaring wildfire, even well watered plants would keep a home unscathed, however every little bit helps.

Another major factor in a fire resistant landscape is planning four to six feet wide walks around your home that break up the flammability of areas. For years, my landscape design philosophy has been that one should be able to walk comfortably around your own residence. These walks do not have to be concrete, which is quite expensive. An excellent path can be made of 3/4 inch thick plastic bender board screwed to stakes every three feet. The level grade of the path is brought down four inches, and then weed barrier is laid down with a two inch layer of one-half inch sharp gravel installed over that. Do not use pea-gravel, because it is very slippery. Do not place paths right up next to your house, because this gives a cramped feeling. Instead, have them curve three to four feet from your residence, allowing space for green plantings that will soften your home. Curving your path provides artistic vistas as well as being practicable and serviceable. Driveways and patios also cut down on flammable areas, combining function with fire proofing.

Pruning trees eight feet off of the ground, and judiciously thinning them also contributes to a fire safe landscape. Always cut a branch off of a tree just above the branch collar (where it thickens as it joins another branch) of the tree. Never leave stubs; they are unhealthy for the tree, and unsightly. Be sure to cut out any dead wood from shrubs and trees, as they are much more flammable. Our variable Sierra climate, that can go from hot one day, to freezing the next, can contribute to a lot of dead wood on plants.

Dry creek beds also create a fire border. Start by marking your design with chalk. Curves in the dry creek bed create a natural look. Then rototill or dig the area to create a concave shape. Use three different sizes of river rock to creates a more natural look. Use sections of weed barrier under the rocks to keep down the weeds. I like to wheelbarrow the rocks over the sections of weed barrier, spreading them out in a random pattern, and then go to the next section. Be sure that each section of weed barrier overlaps the next, especially following the slope of the land.

Small design lawns close to your home on an automatic spray irrigation system can also contribute to the defensible space around your home. However, a lawn should not be any closer than three feet to your home, so that windows are not sprayed, and the foundation of your home is not compromised. The best landscaping right next to your home is shrubs that are spaced four feet apart, on a drip irrigation system. Remember that if your plants are on drip irrigation, they should be watered 45 minutes to one hour in the middle of summer. That is because drip irrigation puts out water in gallons per hour, while spray irrigation waters in gallons per minute. Also it is very important to have a pressure regulator that regulates the water to 25 PSI for drip, so that your emitters do not pop off, and an 80-mesh filter that is manufactured just for drip irrigation, so that the system does not clog up. These will screw right on to your irrigation valve.

Another nice thing to do if you have enough land is to leave an area far from your house unmowed for wildlife habitat.

If deer have a little grass and weeds left for them, they will be less likely to eat your landscaping.

Deer resistant plant lists are available at our local nurseries, and in Sunset Western Garden book.