Fire Safe Gardening

Posted By Firefox on June 30, 2009

When the Spanish missionaries explored the landscape of California, they often named canyons or valleys for the plants that grew abundantly there.  Many features, even in Death Valley, are named for the native California Grape, Vitis californica.  This hardy, drought tolerant vine scrambled over rocky cliffs, or over trees along stream banks remiding the explorers of the vineyards back in Spain.

Photo courtesy of Wildscaping.com

This grape make in ideal fire safe plant for many reasons. Like many edible plants California Grape not only provides fruit but also can be used for shade. In my garden, Vitis c. ‘Roger’s Red’ clambers up the pillars of my porch.  The stems dangle down to create a living awning in summer.  But unlike other vines like honeysuckle that create a mass of fire prone twigs and dead leaves, grapes have few stems and soft thin leaves the wilt quickly during a fire.  I also choose plants that will provide more than one season of interest. In the case of ‘Roger’s Red’, the grass green leaves turn shades of red in late summer and fall and linger well into early winter.

California Grape can be used on fences, arbors, or on banks as a informal groundcover.

Categories: fires and fire safety, organics and sustainability
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