In light of the devastating wildfires that have ravaged their way across Southern California in recent weeks, we would like to take some time to discuss how you can protect your home and property from fire damage. For instance, certain kinds of defensive landscaping can go a long way toward keeping your home and family safe. Below, we will take a look at how exactly that works.
What is defensive landscaping?
Defensive landscaping utilizes judicious selection and placement of plants to strategically decrease the damage that may be caused by wildfire or other types of destructive fire damage. It also involves maintaining the health of trees and bushes and eliminating debris so that fires are less likely to quickly take to a property if nearby. This can go a long way toward keeping your home safe and minimizing the disastrous effects of a fire. Main principles of defensive landscaping include:
• Planting with fire resistance in mind
• Clearing flammable debris
• Strategically placing landscaping materials
• Maintaining the health of current plants
Is this kind of landscaping unattractive?
When you hear words like defensive or fire resistant, you might begin to conjure up images of rusty metal, cold concrete slabs, or sharp rock beds. Actually, defensive landscaping can be just as attractive as any kind of landscaping, if not more so. It simply utilizes the placement of plants to keep you and your home safer. Lush green plants and trees are much more fire resistant than wide open spaces or dead and dried out foliage. Many methods of defensive landscaping may actually wind up making a yard more aesthetically pleasing.
Maintaining Your Yard
Beginning the process of fireproofing your yard is easier than you may think. For the most part, good maintenance is all you need. You’ll want to maintain your yard and trees and keep them as healthy as possible. Additional strategic planting and placement of plants can also be helpful. It’s also a good idea to remove unwanted debris like dead leaves and branches.
How to Protect Your Trees
Maintaining the health of your trees is an important first step. For the most part, mature trees can fend for themselves. You can help protect them by keeping root systems safe and trimming away dead branches. Mulching regularly is also wise.
• Mulch Regularly
Mulching around the base of your trees is important. Mulch helps your trees maintain proper levels of moisture. It can also add key nutrients to the soil, depending on the kind of mulch you use. Apply one to four inches of mulch around the base of each tree. Start an inch away from the trunk and extend mulch all the way to the drip line of the under the branches. Repeat every few months or whenever you see mulch drying out or blowing away.
• Don’t Over Fertilize
Mature trees don’t need all that much fertilizer. Fertilizer can contain a lot of moisture, and too much moisture can actually be bad for trees. In addition to this, fertilizer can be flammable.
• Protect Root Systems
A root system is the lifeline of a tree. Many kinds of root damage are accidental. For instance, did you know that parking under a tree can damage its roots? Vehicles compact soil and thus may hinder root function. It’s also important to watch where you dig.
For more tips on strategic planting and other defensive methods to prevent the spread of wildfires, follow this link.
ReBLDing Can Help
ReBLDing can help restore communities that have gone through hard times caused by the wildfires. If you need help maintaining your yard, planting defensively, or repairing fire damage that’s already been done, don’t stress. We are here to help.
ReBLDing has an extensive database of industry professionals that can assist you with essentially everything and anything in the housing industry. We can help you find the contractor services that you’re looking for. Our user-friendly interface allows you to track communications between contractors, see the status of current jobs, get fair estimates, and much more. If you need contractor services of any kind, you can count on ReBLDing to simplify the entire process from start to finish. In times of uncertainty, ReBLDing will help you find professionals that you can trust in an environment that puts you at ease.