Hello FACNM community!
We hope you all had a great holiday weekend and Fourth of July. Although we’re well into gardening season here in New Mexico the blooms we’ve seen around our community lately have inspired us to write a garden/landscaping-focused post! There are many ornamental and native plants that thrive in our yards across New Mexico and you can incorporate these plants and other design concepts into your garden to make your property more fire-adapted.
This Wildfire Wednesday includes information on:
Landscaping your defensible space
“Fire Wise” plants for New Mexico
NM Cooperative Extension & County Extension services
Happy gardening!
Liz
Landscaping Defensible Space
Often when we think of defensible space we are focused on removing plant material from our property, but you can still have many plants and creative landscaping in a fire-adapted yard! Check out some advice from F.C. Dennis’ Fire-Resistant Landscaping fact sheet for how to appropriately landscape your defensible space around your home.
Defensible space landscaping design tips from F.C. Dennis:
Landscape according to the recommended defensible-space zones. That is, the plants near your home should be more widely spaced and lower growing than those farther away.
Do not plant in large masses. Instead, plant in small, irregular clusters or islands.
Use decorative rock, gravel and stepping stone pathways to break up the continuity of the vegetation and fuels. This can modify fire behavior and slow the spread of fire across your property. It is highly recommended that the first 3-5 feet away from the house be gravel, flagstone, pavers, or some other non-flammable material.
Incorporate a diversity of plant types and species in your landscape. Not only will this be visually satisfying, but it should help keep pests and diseases from causing problems within the whole landscape.
In the event of drought and water rationing, prioritize plants to be saved. Provide available supplemental water to plants closest to your house.
Use mulches to conserve moisture and reduce weed growth. To reduce fire danger, it is best to use a non-organic mulch such as pea gravel or stone, but leaf mold or compost is also acceptable. Mulch can be organic or inorganic. Do not use pine bark, thick layers of pine needles or other mulches that readily carry fire.
Be creative! Further vary your landscape by including bulbs, Garden art and containers for added color.
Image credit: F.C. Dennis Fire-Resistant Landscaping; Fact Sheet No. 6.303
Fire Wise Plants for New Mexico
The New Mexcio locust plant (photo: USDA Forest Service)
Once you’ve designed or altered your yard to be more fire-resistant you may want to plant some new species that will support your defensible space! The Santa Fe Botanical Garden has great information about “Firescaping” and which plant species are appropriate for our yards in New Mexico, click here to learn more.
Also, Check out this Fire Wise Plant Materials guide from the New Mexico Cooperative Extension Service to learn more about Firescaping and for a list of all recommended trees, shrubs, flowers and ground covers for your yard!
Prickly Pear Cactus (Photo credit: Amy Stone, OSU Extension)
NM Cooperative Extension
NM Cooperative Extension and your County Extension offices are one of the best resources available for guidance and information about your garden and property. The Cooperative Extension Service exists to provide “practical, research-based knowledge throughout New Mexico”. Not only do they have a variety of information, publications, and videos on their website but they encourage you to reach out directly to your County Extension office if you have questions. Click here to discover which County Extension office can help you with your garden or landscaping project.
Different County Extension jurisdictions across New Mexico (https://aces.nmsu.edu/county/)