June 17, 2008
Protect And Beautify Your Home With "Firewise" Landscaping
By Leslie Kimel
Fire is a natural part of many of Florida’s ecosystems. Frequent low-intensity fires keep Florida’s piney woods, scrublands, sandhills and prairies in a state of optimum health and diversity.
But for people living on the edges of these wild areas, fire can be a destructive force. In 2007, 30 homes in Florida were lost to wildfire, and many more were damaged. Because wildfire is a year-round risk in Florida, the Division of Forestry is encouraging residents of the wildland-urban interface to protect their homes with “Firewise” landscaping.
“When we talk about the wildland-urban interface, we’re talking about those places where the leaves meet the eaves,” said state wildfire mitigation coordinator Gerry LaCavera. “We mean places where homes have been built either right in or close to what we typically call the wildland area, places where there’s a lot of vegetation that burns very quickly and very intensely.”
As wildfire season heats up, homes built on the fringes of Florida’s wild areas don’t have to be sitting ducks. According to the Division of Forestry, homeowners can create a safety zone around their homes, an area that forestry professionals refer to as “defensible space.”
“Defensible space is an area of at least 30 feet between the wildland and your house that is landscaped with fire safety in mind,” LaCavera said. “The purpose of this space is to keep fire from jumping from a wildland area to your home.”
Defensible space is an area that should be carefully maintained, but it doesn’t have to be sterile-looking, unattractive, or devoid of vegetation. The swept dirt yards of the old days made effective firebreaks, but today’s Firewise landscape can be a much lusher and greener place.
“A lot of people have the idea that we’re suggesting they completely clear out that area and leave a barren piece of earth, but that’s not the case,” LaCavera said. “We’re encouraging people to landscape with low-flammability plants, plants that don’t conduct fire very easily, that don’t ignite very easily. Typically, these plants are very easy to take care of, very beautiful, and very in tune with water-wise maintenance.”
Firewise plants are plants that tend to hold plenty of moisture. Their leaves are thick and succulent or broad and flat and don’t contain highly flammable oils, resins, or waxes. They have a loose, open branching structure and are self-pruning, meaning they don’t retain a lot of dead leaves and branches (dead plant materials are highly flammable). Examples of native Firewise plants for North Florida include anise, beautyberry, flowering dogwood, wild azalea, redbud, and magnolia. Down south, buttonwood, gumbo limbo, satinleaf, and native black olive make the list.
Lawn grasses can be Firewise, too -- as long as they’re kept short and well hydrated.
“Some people will let the grass near their house grow up knee-high and then it will dry out and actually invite the wildfire to their home,” LaCavera said. “You don’t want to do that. But if you keep your grass well mowed and well irrigated, it will keep any fire close to the ground and slow moving.”
A healthy lawn doesn’t have to be a water hog. The key is to water deeply but infrequently to encourage deep roots. Timing is also critical. The best time to turn on the sprinkler is early in the morning so the water has a few cool hours to soak into the soil and won’t immediately evaporate in the sun.
Plants in the defensible space should be as carefully arranged as they are carefully chosen. Instead of crowding the foundation of the house with plants, homeowners are encouraged to locate shrubbery at least several feet away from the building and to keep it well pruned so it won’t be in contact with the siding or windows. Make sure plants are spaced well apart from one another. Giving plants a little breathing room not only improves fire safety but also plant health. Even when landscaping further away from the house, homeowners should avoid planting shrubs in large masses. Instead, shrubs should be used as specimens or arranged in small islands with gravel walks, strips of lawn, or stepping stones in between to serve as firebreaks.
“By separating your plants you’ll make it less likely that fire will jump from one plant to another and start a cascading effect directly to your home,” LaCavera said.
Vertical separation is as important as horizontal separation since vines and shrubs can act as ladders, carrying flames from the ground to the treetops. To create vertical separation, trees should be pruned so the lowest branches start six to 10 feet from the ground, and vines and shrubs should never be planted directly under trees.
“Vines, shrubs, and dead, hanging branches can carry fire from the ground into the trees, and we don’t want that,” LaCavera said. “Fire on the ground is much easier to control than fire that gets up in the treetops.”
Mulch is another issue to consider, because, unfortunately, a lot of organic mulches can be fire hazards. Pine straw, for example, makes beautiful mulch, but it dries out quickly, becoming highly flammable, and should not be used at all in fire-prone locations. Close to the house, the best mulch may be no mulch. If you want something more decorative than bare ground, you might try gravel, lava rocks, or even sea shells. None of these will carry fire, and they can all be used to a very pleasing effect.
For lists of Firewise landscaping materials and helpful landscaping advice, visit the Division of Forestry’s website at www.fl-dof.com or contact your local county extension office.
“With a little effort and imagination, you can create a Firewise landscape that will increase the good looks of your home and its long-term value,” LaCavera said.
