Hart Park will host UC program to teach residents about fire-safe building materials and landscaping.

The SAFE (Sustainable and Fire SafE) Landscapes program, developed by the University of California Cooperative Extension along with the Los Angeles and San Gabriel Rivers Watershed Council, the Los Angeles County Fire Department Forestry Division and others, will present a fire safety workshop at Hart Park in Newhall on Saturday, November 3 from 10am to 1pm.

The SAFE program teaches techniques for observing good fire safety practices.

• Avoid starting fires in and around the home.
• Plan a good fire response strategy for your family.
• Employ fire-resistant building materials and architectural features.
• Beyond the home, develop a fire-resistant landscape where plants and hardscape are maintained to avoid easy fire transmission.
• Establish a defensible space to reduce the risk of fire transmission to your property.

According to the SAFE program, "There is no way to completely ensure that your home will not be exposed to wildfire.  If you live in a high fire hazard severity zone in the wildland-urban interface, it is not a question of IF a fire will occur, but WHEN.  Preparation for wildfire requires that you take responsibility for your safety, property and pets.  Maintain your property to reduce the risk of damage during a wildfire, and be fully prepared to evacuate."

Learn more about protecting your property and pets at SAFE’s November 3 workshop in Santa Clarita. Register here for the Santa Clarita program. You can also read more information about the SAFE program here.

For more information on fire safety prepared by the SAFE program, you can download their colorful and informative calendar here. The calendar gives month-by-month tips on landscaping, brush clearance, recommended plants, highly flammable plants, and more.

Important to note in the Santa Clarita area is that many of our commonly used landscaping plants can create fire hazards. Among the potentially hazardous plants are:

• Pampas Grass: May create a fire hazard with excessive build-up of dry leaves and flowering stalks.
• Highway or Crystalline Iceplant: Can spread to form nearly impenetrable, shallow-rooted mats that dominate native plant communities and do not prevent erosion. The woody thatch underlying these mats can also become a fire hazard if not maintained properly.
• Large Periwinkle and English Ivy: Thick mats can be difficult to maintain, and can hide underlying dead, dry material, which can be a fire hazard. California Desert Grape or Beach Strawberry are good ivy-like alternatives, as well as Star Jasmine.
• Mexican Fan Palms: If not properly pruned, these palms hold on to their large collars of dried and highly flammable fronds. Many fire officials blame the rapid spread of the Old Fire in San Bernardino on Mexican Fan Palms.
• Eucalyptus: A highly flammable tree and should not be planted near wildlands.
• Edible Fig: They form dense thickets that are difficult to control due to rapid resprouting after cutting.
• Pines, Juniper and Cypress: Have characteristics that may make them highly flammable, such as the production of leaf litter or peeling bark, or the presence of volatile oils and resins. The Los Angeles County Fire Department recommends that they should not be planted near homes in very high fire severity zones and care should be taken to remove them from the fuel management zone. Beyond the fuel management zone, the native species of these plants are important and attractive components of wildland ecosystems and provide habitat for native birds and wildlife.

Many areas in the Santa Clarita Valley have Homeowners Associations (HOAs) that are responsibile for brush clearance and establishing protective greenbelts around their communities. In areas without HOAs, it is your responsibility as a homeowner to make sure that you have adequate brush clearance and fire safety procedures in place. The SAFE Landscapes calendar has a list of resources and websites to assist you in learning about proper brush clearance.

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