The Best Fire-Resistant Plants for Your Home Landscape

Protect Your Home from Brush Fires

Create a Defensible Space

• Clear away dry grass, brush, and dead leaves within 30 feet from your home.
• Focus on low-growing, fire-retardant ornamental plants in your landscape design.
• Regularly prune all plants to remove dead wood, excess stems, and branches.
• Trees and large shrubs should be placed at least 10 feet apart from each other, and away from your home. Trees should never overhang your roof.
• For trees 18-feet tall or more, prune lower branches 6 feet off the ground to help prevent ground fires from spreading into treetops.
• Firewood and scrap woodpiles should be stacked at least 30 feet from any structures, especially your home. Clear away flammable vegetation located within 10 feet of woodpiles.
• Butane and propane tanks should be kept at least 30 feet from any structures. Clear away flammable vegetation located within 10 feet of butane or propane tanks.
• Water just enough to keep plants healthy. Too much promotes excess plant growth and creates more potential fire fuel, while too little lowers the moisture content and causes plants to burn more readily.
• Most importantly, the 30-foot defensible space must be maintained regularly in order to be effective.
• Note: In extremely hazardous areas, the California Public Resources Code, Section 4291, requires clearance of flammable vegetation for a minimum distance of 30 to 100 feet from structures.