If you are improving your landscaping this summer at your Lake Nacimiento home, it’d be wise to consider fire-resistant landscaping. If we all practice fire safety, hopefully there will be no more wildfires near Lake Nacimiento for the rest of the summer season! However, it’s always smart to be prepared, and fire-resistant landscaping is a way to strategically place plants in a way that resists the spread of fire to your home.
As your Lake Nacimiento real estate agent, I am happy to report that you don’t have to spend a fortune to make your landscape fire-safe. Plus, this type of landscaping can increase your property value in the Central Coast region, and these practices could help you conserve water!
The Heritage Ranch Owners Association shared information on this from the CAL FIRE website. Here’s a summary of their tips:
First, create defensible space around your Lake Nacimiento home. In Zone 1, which extends 30 feet from your house, remove all dead plants, grass and weeds, and remove dead or dry leaves and pine needles from your yard, roof and gutters. Trim trees regularly; ideally, branches from one tree should be a minimum of 10 feet from another tree. Keep plants and shrubs near windows pruned regularly. Remove vegetation from under decks.
In Zone 2, which extends 100 feet out from your home, store wood in this zone rather than in Zone 1. Mow grass down to maximum of four inches. Create horizontal and vertical spacing between shrubs and trees. Remove fallen trees, needles, twigs, bark, cones and small branches.
The next step is to choose fire-resistant plants and materials. Some suggestions for this:
Create fire-safe zones with stone walls, patios, decks and roadways. Use rock, mulch, flower beds and gardens as ground cover for bare spaces. This keeps you safe, but also firefighters if need be.
While there are no fire-proof plants, high-moisture plants that grow close the ground are the least likely to catch on fire, especially those with low sap or resin content.
Plants that are more fire-retardant than others: Rockrose, ice plant and aloe.
Shrubs that are more fire-resistant than others: Hedging roses, bush honeysuckles, currant, cotoneaster, sumac and shrub apples.
Trees that are less flammable than others: Hardwood, maple, poplar and cherry trees. Pine, fir and other conifers are more flammable.
Other potential options include French lavender, red monkey flower, California fuchsia, sage, California lilac, society garlic and more, which are all fire-resistant but also thrive in drought conditions. You can view more options on the CAL FIRE website, or visit a local nursery and ask for advice on plants best suited to your area.
This information isn’t meant to scare you, but rather to keep you safe in worse-case scenario situations. Lake Nacimiento is and will forever be a beautiful place to call home! When ready to buy a permanent home or vacation home, or when ready to sell your current home, contact our Oak Shores Realty real estate team! We are here and ready to help you accomplish your Lake Nacimiento real estate goals this summer!
Grace Borzini
Your Local Lake Nacimiento Real Estate Expert
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Oak Shores Realty specializes in Oak Shores at Lake Nacimiento properties. Please contact us today to get more information on Lake Nacimiento lake homes. Oak Shores Realty can also provide you an insiders “Lake Nacimiento Buying Guide” with great information including maps and market information.