5 Plants That INCREASE Your Wildfire Risk

Arborvitae

Despite being one of the most popular shrubs for hedging and privacy screens, arborvitae is considered a higher wildfire risk plant. It contains volatile oils, dense foliage, and often develops significant dead interior growth as it ages or becomes drought stressed. When planted in long hedge rows, fire can move quickly from plant to plant and toward nearby structures. Once ignited, mature hedges are often difficult to suppress because of their dense branching and dry internal fuel load.

Better alternatives: mixed deciduous hedge rows or broadleaf evergreen shrubs such as laurel, choysia, or photinia.

Juniper

Junipers are one of the most common residential fire hazards found in ornamental landscapes. Their dense foliage, fine branching, and volatile oils allow them to ignite quickly and burn intensely. Many junipers act like a torch once lit, producing fast moving flames and high heat. Groundcover junipers planted against foundations, fences, or decks can be especially concerning because they create a direct fuel path to structures.

Better alternatives: kinnikinnick, point reyes ceanothus and other broadleaf groundcovers.

Pampas Grass

Pampas grass is one of the riskiest ornamental plants in fire prone areas. Its tall dry blades, fluffy seed heads, and heavy buildup of dead thatch create abundant fine fuel that can ignite easily and burn rapidly. Mature clumps can become surprisingly large and difficult to manage, creating a substantial fuel source close to structures including fences and outbuildings. In windy conditions, flames can spread very quickly through drifts of these dried ornamental - sometimes invasive grasses.

Better alternatives: tufted hair grass, evergreen carex, blue oat grass and other native grasses.

Pine

Pines contain highly flammable pitch and resin, they shed dry needles, and can contribute significantly to ember spread during wildfire events. Needles often accumulate on roofs, in gutters, garden beds, and around structures where they create fine fuel build up an increase your ignition risk. Lower branches can also create fire ladders where ground fires climb upward into the canopy. While pines are iconic and valuable trees in many ecosystems, stretegic placement and ongoing maintenance near homes are critical.

Better alternatives: deciduous trees, broadleaf evergreens, well spaced mixed canopy plantings.

Eucalyptus

Eucalyptus is admired for its beauty, fragrance, and rapid growth, but what gives these trees their wonderful scent is also what makes the highly flammable. Eucalyptus contains high amounts of voiltoil oils that can increase ignition risk and intensify fire behavior, their peeling bark and dry leaf litter can increase ember production, especially when trees are planted close to homes or grouped densely.

Better alternatives: arbutus, strawberry tree, Garry oak, Pacific wax myrtle.

BONUS! Scotch Broom

Although not commonly grown as a garden ornamental anymore, this invasive shrub is a major wildfire issue in British Columbia. It forms dense stands of woody stems that dry out heavily in summer and burns hot and fast once ignited. Scotch broom often colonizes roadsides, disturbed land, and forest edges, creating continuous fuel that can accelerate wildfire spread. It also outcompetes native vegetation, adding ecological damage to the fire hazard.

If you do have Scotch broom on your property, removing it will reduce wildfire fuel.

Do you have any of these plants that increase your wildfire risk?

I offer firescaping consultations and landscape design services to help residents grow more wildfire resilient gardens and replace these high risk plants with beautiful, resilient alternatives. Plants that increase wildfire risk.