Preparing Your Garden for Fire Season with Firescaping
- Bethany
- Jun 1
- 2 min read
Updated: Jun 14
As the days grow longer and drier, many gardeners in fire-prone areas start to think not just about planting and pruning, but about protecting. With wildfire season approaching, taking time to prepare your garden can make a meaningful difference in defending your home and community from fire risk. Wildfires spread quickly and unpredictably. Embers can travel kilometers ahead of a fire front, landing in dry vegetation, mulch, or woodpiles close to homes. A well-prepared garden acts as a buffer zone, slowing or deflecting fire and giving firefighters a better chance of protecting your property. Whether you’re gardening in a forested neighborhood or maintaining a cozy urban plot, wildfire-resilient landscaping is something everyone can benefit from.
1. Clear and Clean: Start With a Spring Tidy-Up
Remove dry or dead plant material – Clear away dead leaves, branches, and thatch that build up in garden beds and gutters.
Rake up needles and leaves – Especially within 1.5 meters of structures.
Trim back overgrown plants – Especially anything touching your home, fences, or deck.
Keep grass trimmed short – Aim for under 10 cm (4").
Tip: Don’t forget hidden fire risks like under your deck, behind sheds, along fence lines or wood piles.
2. Create a Non-Combustible Zone (0–1.5m from the house)
This is your most important line of defense. Keep it lean, clean, and green.
Use gravel, stone, or pavers instead of bark mulch near buildings.
Remove flammable plants like juniper, cedar, or ornamental grasses in this zone.
If you must have plants in this area, replace with fire-resistant groundcovers like sedum, yarrow, or native strawberry.
3. Break Up Fuel Continuity
Fires travel through connected fuels. Interrupting those pathways helps slow the spread.
Separate plant groupings with hardscape features, pathways, or patches of bare soil.
Prune lower branches of trees and shrubs, especially conifers to create vertical separation from ground vegetation (at least 2 m clearance).
Avoid “fuel ladders” where fire could climb from grass to shrubs to tree canopy.
4. Plant for Fire Resistance
Choose plants that retain moisture, resist ignition, and don’t produce high volumes of volatile oils.
Opt for broadleaf deciduous trees and low-resin shrubs like Oregon Grape, Lilac, or Red Flowering Currant.
Avoid fire-prone species like Juniper, Broom, Pine, and Cedars.
5. Maximize Water Efficiency
A resilient garden is a hydrated garden but that doesn’t mean wasting water.
Mulch with compost away from structures and never use fine, dry mulch near buildings.
Use drip irrigation or soaker hoses to water deeply and efficiently.
Consider adding swales or rain gardens to retain moisture longer in the soil.
Preparing your garden for fire season doesn’t mean sacrificing beauty or biodiversity. With thoughtful design and regular seasonal care, you can create a space that’s vibrant, abundant, and protective. A wildfire-resilient garden isn’t just about safety, it’s about stewardship and love for the land we live on.
