Space trees, shrubs and grasses to minimize and slow the transmission of fire from one plant to another.
- Space trees so that at maturity their crowns are 10 to 15 feet apart or more.
- Avoid planting trees in rows or hedges.
- The steeper the slope, the more space to leave between plants and trees.
- Plant spacing, size control and maintenance are more important than type of plant.
- Maintain vertical clearance of at least 3X the shrub’s height between the tops of shrubs and the bottom of the tree canopy. This can be done by pruning the shrub down, or pruning smaller, easily ignitable tree branches up, or both.
Visit Marin Master Gardeners’ website at https://marinmg.ucanr.edu// for more information.
