The city of Santa Rosa, which is located in California has provided a homeowner guide for fire-safe landscaping. At Wildfire Design & Build, we would like to highlight a few landscaping steps in creating a wildfire-safe environment.
A few recommended steps for a wildfire-safe environment for your property.
How to create a wildfire-safe landscape zone.
Step One
The first step in creating a wildfire-safe environment for your home is to evaluate the exterior surrounding area of your home.
The question is, what can ignite and burn around your home? Look even for the littlest of things!
Items such as paper, old wood, tree branches, leaves and needles, and even the deck lounge chair cushions can be a hazard.
It’s time to make a fire defense plan for your property!
Step Two
The second step is to determine what is needed to do for the defense of your home and property. This plan should take in the three different fire-safe zones.
These zones are a home ignition zone, the defensible space zone, and your wildland fuel reduction zone.
What are these zones? Click on the links provided for the zone definitions.
Step Three
In the third step, it’s time to prepare the implementation of the fire safety plan that you have developed for your property. If possible complete your property fire-safe maintenance work by June 1st of each year.
Maintain your outdoor power tools, make sure they have spark arresters.
If you have to work on your property during the summer months, complete your work by 10 a.m. in the morning.
Step four
This is an important step. Before cutting down any trees, property owners should check with their community association and city or county for any special regulations.
If any work is done near a river, stream, lake, or tributary. The Department of Fish & Wildlife should be notified or consulted. Contact www.wildfire.ca.gov/conservation/lsa.
Special thanks to the city of Santa Rosa, the Fire Department of Santa Rosa, and the Butte County Fire Safe Council for the homeowner guide to fire-safe landscaping.
For additional steps and information on this topic or a printed copy, go to www.firesafehelp.com