Due to our ongoing drought conditions, fire-wise landscaping is now a year-round responsibility in Southern California. While no plants are fire-proof, some can greatly reduce the heat generated during a wildfire, and reduce the ability of the fire to travel to a home or structure.
Here are some fire-wise landscaping tips from BeWaterWise.com:
Keep plants properly watered, especially within 30’ of home but do not overwater.
Use of hard scape materials, such as stone/brick/concrete pathways and patios, and inorganic mulches adjacent to home adds to your fire resistant landscape.
Prune back tree limbs to 10’ from chimney.
Clear leaves and needles out of gutters and roof valleys.
Native plants can be used. Some may require trimming up lower branches. Eliminate fuel ladders from ground to lower then upper branches.
Remove invasive plant species, such as, Arundo, castor bean, and ivy.
Ensure that fuel management activities do not disturb birds’ nests, especially hummingbirds’, which are walnut-sized and easily overlooked.
Maintain defensible space around your home. Check with your local fire dept for the required distance.
Defensible space around your home reduces the risk of fire transmission to your property and allows firefighters safe access around structures. More info about defensible space here: https://www.pacificvistalandscape.com/single-post/2018/04/29/Defensible-Space
Going on vacation?
Before you leave for your vacation, make sure that you have also left your home well prepared in case a wildfire occurs while you are away:
Make sure to close all windows and doors securely
Remove anything flammable around perimeter of house, including any outdoor furniture, cushions, door mats, and trash cans
Clean up all yard debris before leaving, including under decks and in rain gutters
Making the choice to adapt these fire-wise tips can make the difference if a wildfire threatens your home or business. If you would like our landscaping experts to asses your landscaped areas, give us a call at 661-222-7525 for a free consultation!
New Rebate Program for Replacing Lawn With Native Landscaping
Southern Californians looking for ways to save water and money are getting a helping hand from the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California just as summer temperatures are heating up.
Metropolitan launched its new Landscape Transformation Program, offering residents and businesses $1 for every square foot of thirsty grass they replace with more water efficient native plants and irrigation systems.
The district also kicked off its summer advertising and outreach campaign today. The multi-million dollar “365” campaign encourages Southern Californians to conserve water every day and reminds them to take advantage of Metropolitan’s rebate programs—including cash back for water-saving washing machines, toilets, sprinkler nozzles, smart irrigation systems and other devices and appliances, in addition to transforming their landscapes.
“Southern Californians have learned the value of saving water. They understand water is a limited resource, especially after the recent drought. But sometimes we all need a little nudge and a little extra incentive to keep using water as efficiently as possible. Our programs and campaign offer that incentive,” said Metropolitan General Manager Jeffrey Kightlinger.
Details about the new landscape program and all of Metropolitan’s rebates are available at Metropolitan’s online water-savings portal bewaterwise.com. The mobile-friendly site offers tips, educational materials, how-to videos and classes on how to be more water efficient.
Metropolitan helped change the way Southern Californians see their yards and open spaces with its popular turf removal program in 2014-2015. That program, the largest anywhere in the country, spurred the replacement of 160 million square feet of grass during one of California’s worst droughts. This time around, instead of a short-term urgent drought response, Metropolitan’s new Landscape Transformation Program will be ongoing, with up to $50 million in applications accepted a year. Some Metropolitan member agencies may provide additional incentives on top of the $1 a square foot.
“Since the turf rebate program ended three years ago, residents have been asking for its return. We used lessons learned from the earlier program in developing the new Landscape Transformation Program. We’ve incorporated new requirements to drive a sustainable approach, encouraging our long-term commitment to help Southern Californians use less water,” said Bill McDonnell, Metropolitan’s water use efficiency manager.
Another key part of that commitment is Metropolitan’s new 365 campaign which builds on Metropolitan’s H2Love conservation campaign. With the tagline, “Every day is a chance to save water. And money,” the campaign not only encourages viewers to conserve, it tells them how to get financial help doing so with rebates available at bewaterwise.com.
Southern Californians will see the campaign everywhere—from a television commercial by an award-winning director (above) to online and social media ads to billboards and even small posters in local convenience stores and on lunch trucks. And it will be multilingual, translated into Spanish, Chinese, Korean, Vietnamese and Filipino.
In addition, the campaign finds creative ways to reach diverse audiences, including using on-air personalities on Spanish-language channels, a Chinese-language game show and special events, such as Viva Los Dodgers.
If you would like help with the new landscape transformation program, our professionals at Pacific Vista landscape Services are experts and can help with the rebate process to replace your current landscaping with beautiful plants that save water and money! Call us today for a free consultation at 661-222-7525.
The Metropolitan Water District of Southern California is a state-established cooperative of 26 cities and water agencies serving nearly 19 million people in six counties. The district imports water from the Colorado River and Northern California to supplement local supplies, and helps its members to develop increased water conservation, recycling, storage and other resource-management programs.
Creating defensible space is important to improve your home’s ability to survive a wildfire. It’s the space you make between your property's buildings and the surrounding area of landscape.
This buffer zone is essential to prevent the spread of fire to your home. Defensible space is also important to give firefighters a chance to properly defend your home and to increase their safety.
100 Feet of Defensible Space Required by Law
Back in January 2005, state law became effective that extended the defensible space clearance around homes and structures from 30 feet to 100 feet. Studies showed that proper clearance to 100 feet dramatically increases the chance of your house surviving a wildfire. Defensible Space Zones
Two zones make up the required 100 feet of defensible space. California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection and ReadyforWildfire.org have great tips to create a “LEAN, CLEAN and GREEN ZONE” by removing all flammable vegetation within 30 feet immediately surrounding your home. Then create a “REDUCED FUEL ZONE” in the remaining 70 feet or to your property line.
Zone 1
Zone 1 extends 30 feet* out from buildings, structures, decks, etc.
Remove all dead plants, grass and weeds (vegetation).
Remove dead or dry leaves and pine needles from your yard, roof and rain gutters.
Trim trees regularly to keep branches a minimum of 10 feet from other trees.
Remove branches that hang over your roof and keep dead branches 10 feet away from your chimney.
Relocate wood piles into Zone 2.
Remove or prune flammable plants and shrubs near windows.
Remove vegetation and items that could catch fire from around and under decks.
Create a separation between trees, shrubs and items that could catch fire, such as patio furniture, wood piles, swing sets, etc.
Zone 2
Zone 2 extends 100 feet out from buildings, structures, decks, etc.
Cut or mow annual grass down to a maximum height of 4 inches.
Create horizontal spacing between shrubs and trees. (See diagram)
Create vertical spacing between grass, shrubs and trees. (See diagram)
Remove fallen leaves, needles, twigs, bark, cones, and small branches. However, they may be permitted to a depth of 3 inches.
* San Diego County requires 50 feet of clearance in Zone 1. Check with your local fire department for any additional defensible space or weed abatement ordinances. Plant and Tree Spacing
The spacing between grass, shrubs, and trees is crucial to reduce the spread of wildfires. The spacing needed is determined by the type and size of brush and trees, as well as the slope of the land. For example, a property on a steep slope with larger vegetation requires greater spacing between trees and shrubs than a level property that has small, sparse vegetation. Vertical Spacing
Remove all tree branches at least 6 feet from the ground. Allow extra vertical space between shrubs and trees. Lack of vertical space can allow a fire to move from the ground to the brush to the tree tops like a ladder. To determine the proper vertical spacing between shrubs and the lowest branches of trees, use the formula below.
Example: A five foot shrub is growing near a tree. 3×5 = 15 feet of clearance needed between the top of the shrub and the lowest tree branch. Horizontal Spacing
Horizontal spacing depends on the slope of the land and the height of the shrubs or trees. Check the chart below to determine spacing distance.
Our team at Pacific Vista Landscape Services can help your home or commercial property meet the Defensible Space requirements. Call us today for a free estimate and see what we can do for you!
