Being Firewise. Protecting Your Home - And Your Neighbor's

My arborvitaes planted too close to house :(

Firewise Landscaping. Part 1. 
I recently attended a Master Gardening class in the Tri-Cities, where Desert Aire’s Garden club members (we call ourselves ‘Earth Angels’) and other gardeners received some excellent instruction on various topics. The keynote address, “Firewise Landscape,” really got my attention.

Firebrands flying in the wind during a fast-moving wildfire are the biggest fire threat here in Central Washington, we were told. Firebrands can travel fast, up to a mile in the wind, which makes all of us vulnerable in windy conditions. It's easy to imagine combustible materials on our properties catching fire easily. Some of us witnessed this firsthand last summer, as the wind pushed a wildfire perilously close to our homes. Later we saw on the news a devastating fire that destroyed an entire town and took lives in California.

So what exactly are firebrands? This was new terminology for me, but actually we've all seen these fire igniters before. Think of the sparks and hot embers that rise up in a large bonfire. These are firebrands. You know the kind of fire. Those large bonfires on the beach, or as some of us may remember, those bonfire rallies in high school just before a football game. I remember shaking the sparks from my hair over the years. I'd laugh and jump back when I got too close.

Today though in our ongoing dryer climate, fire has never been a more serious threat, which brings me back to the speaker's topic. Being firewise. Some of the smart things we can do to protect our property and that of our neighbor's.

1) Separate plants with noncombustible material (stone, gravel, rock, etc.) where possible. 
  
This includes keeping our yards tidy and well-pruned too. Where organic mulch is desired, keep this area far from house. Six feet or more is recommended.

2) Use firewise materials when building or remodeling (roof, siding, dual-pane windows, etc.).

Wood and vinyl fences are safest when connected to a house by a metal gate/section. One of the speakers, who was a fireman, explained that fencing can catch a home on fire. Vinyl structures (e.g., pergolas) can safely be a foot or so away, because in a fire, these melt as opposed to flaming up...but still get hot.

3) Create a defensible space around your home with three landscaping zones.

Zone 1:  
In this zone plants are placed 0-5 feet from house if you have flame-resistant siding, but 5-10 feet from house if you have non-flame-resistant siding. Plants should be low-flammable varieties (e.g., ground covers, vines, sod grasses, bulbs, perennial/annual herbaceous plants).

Zone 2:  
Plants are 10-30 feet from house. Plant well-spaced broadleaf evergreens, turf/non-turf grasses, deciduous shrubs/single trees. Mature trees are pruned up 10 feet and planted 30 feet from home. Avoid evergreens in this zone.

Zone 3: 
Plants are 30-100 feet from house. Keep yard debris and fuel at a distance in this case. Create firebreaks with low-growing ground covers, deciduous shrubs, and trees (pruned up), broadleaf evergreens, and non-turf grasses.

4) Lastly, consider the impact of your landscaping on neighbors.
Arborvitaes are not firewise, I’m sorry to say. I planted some too (we all did), but these are like torches in a wildfire. Keep these moist and correctly pruned. Yes, you can prune. Next post will explain.

So, now we have a goal at least. I know I came home a bit discouraged at first, but determined to make some positive changes. Next post, I’ll talk about ways to make arborvitaes and similar evergreens less fire-prone.  

HAPPY GARDENING EVERYONE!

Remember, “Without hard work, nothing grows but weeds.” (Gordon B. Hinckley)