A Guide to Help Prepare Your Home For Wildfire
Living in the High Sierra of California has its rewards. Beautiful mountain scenery, wildlife and access to amazing outdoor experiences. But, it also has it’s challenges. Here is a guide to help prepare your home from one of the biggest of them all, wildfire.
Create a Defensible Space
Start by creating a defensible space of 100 feet around your home. The goal is to create a radius around your home to reduce the amount of flammable vegetation. Though this will not keep a fire 100% away from your home, it will provide a better opportunity for fire fighters the to defend it should a wildfire come your way. Start by removing dead vegetation 30-50 feet from your home such as dead grass or dry leaves, pine needles etc. Check roof and rain gutters in addition to the surrounding yard all the way around your home. If you have a wood stove or fire place, stack firewood at least 30 feet away from home. Trim trees regularly to keep branches a minimum of 10 feet from other trees. Remove branches that hang over roof, chimney and sheds. Remove or prune shrubs around home and remove flammable vegetation under decks. Keep grass cut or mowed 100 feet from home, decks and other structures. Prevent fire from jumping by creating space between shrubs and trees. Remove tree branches to at least 6 feet from ground.
Learn more about preparing your home for WildFire at ReadyforWildFire.org http://www.readyforwildfire.org/
Have A Ready To Go Emergency Kit & Action Plan.
Have a wildfire action plan and emergency kit in place NOW. If or when a wildlife comes to your home, be ready with your action plan and emergency kit in advance. Being prepared with these two items will ease the stress of departure from your home should you be evacuated due to wildfire.
What to include in your action plan?
Follow this link for a break down of what you should include in your action plan.
http://www.readyforwildfire.org/Pre-Evacuation-Preparation/
What should I include in my emergency kit? Follow this link for a break down of what to include in your emergency kit. http://www.readyforwildfire.org/Emergency-Supply-Kit/
Other Things to Consider Implementing
Fire-resistant Landscaping Use fire-resistant plants in your landscaping.
Though no plant is “fire-proof”, plants that contain high levels of moisture may reduce the risk of your landscape contributing to a fire.
Below is list of California native fire-resistant plants, trees and shrubs to consider for your garden. Coneflower, Sage, Coralbells, Fescue, Poppy, Wooly Thyme, Stonecrop, Yarrow, Golden Currant, Heather, Honeysuckle, Lilac, Oceanspay, Raspberry , Roses, Russian Sage, Waxflower, Yucca, Black Oak, Cherry, Crabapple, Hawthorn, Honeylocust, Maple, Popla,r Aspen, River Birch