Plants with Favorable Fire Performance
Click here for a list of plants with favorable fire performance.
The list was collected by the Diablo Fire Safe Council. It contains those found in the references that were recommended for use in fire prone environments by at least 3 references. All of the plants listed here were given either a high or moderate fire resistance rating in the references where a rating was assigned, or found listed in the references that categorized plants as fire resistant without assigning a degree of resistance. In most cases, the terms used in the ranking were not defined, and if they were, there is no agreed upon standard definition. For this reason, the plants are listed in this chapter without any attempt to rank them.
The list is sorted by plant form -- groundcovers, shrubs, trees, etc. Some species may appear twice (e.g. once as a groundcover and then again as a shrub) because they have properties attributed to both forms. For a complete description of the plant, including its mature characteristics, climate zones, and information on erosion control and drought tolerance, please refer to Chapter 4, the landscape vegetation database.
It is important to note that a plant's fire performance can be seriously compromised if not maintained. Plants that are not properly irrigated or pruned, or that are planted in climate areas not generally recommended for the plant, will have increased fire risk and will likely make the mature plant undesirable for landscaping in high fire hazard zones.
Plants with Undesirable Fire Performance
Click here for a list of plants that should be avoided within all landscape zones.
Certain plants are considered to be undesirable in the landscape due to the following characteristics:
- A high surface area to volume ratio, such as plants with narrow , needle-like leaves
- A low moisture content
- A large amount of dead material or debris
- Rough or peeling bark
- Chemical properties including the presence of volatile substances such as oils,
resins, wax and pitch
Plants with these characteristics should not be planted in high fire hazard areas.