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Highly flammable plants are rampant in the fire-prone suburbs. The California dream of living in the wooded hills has become a nightmare. If you live anywhere in California but the inner-city, it is vital to keep fire safety in mind when designing your landscape. California is, after all, traditionally dependent upon fire as a part of its natural cycle of renewal.
Fire-resistant plants can even be used as a fragrant and colorful, English-style mixed border with something in bloom at all seasons. They are not a limitation, they are an invitation!
Linda Jewel, professor of Landscape Architecture at UC Berkeley, blames the devastation of California suburban fires on “a romantic view of landscape” which creates the “house in the woods” effect. She describes this landscape as “ornamental plantings crowded right up to the eves of houses, creating ‘fire ladders’ from the wilds to the houses.”
Jewel recommends “not just less combustible plants, but designs that exploit pavings, pergolas and walls rather than greenery.” This brings to mind the Spanish Mission Gardens! |
