Garden maintenance

4 min read

Maintaining the garden at your home, farm or holiday house is an important part of preparing for bushfire season. Simple actions like removing fallen leaves and branches, cutting back trees and keeping plants well watered can make a big difference. Learn how to take care of your garden and reduce the chances of a bushfire destroying your home.

Summary

Make garden maintenance part of your bushfire preparation and planning every year.
Remove dead plants, leaves and branches.
Remove weeds.
Keep grass short.
Keep your plants well watered so they don't burn easily.
Get rid of green waste on site.

Before and during bushfire season

Learn the simple things you can do to prepare your property for fire this season in the video below.

[Property Preparation]

[Gentle music]

Before and during the fire season, it's important to prepare your property, whether you plan to leave early or stay and defend.

If you're staying or it's too late to leave safely, a well-prepared property may reduce the risk to your personal safety.

If you're leaving, there's a better chance your house will be there when you return.

Mowing your lawn and clearing your gutters, is a good start to property preparation. But there are many other simple things that you can do to improve the chances of your home surviving. And remember, maintenance throughout the fire season is key.

[Gentle music continues]

Some of these jobs you can do before the fire season even begins.

Prune back any branches that are overhanging or near the house that could break off and cause damage allowing embers inside. Prune off branches that are less than two meters off the ground. Keep shrubs under trees short, this creates space, making it harder for the fire to travel up into the trees, which would result in a more intense fire.

A woodpile is a handy thing to have next to your house during winter, but during summer, it's an ember trap. So move it away for the warmer months.

[Gentle music continues]

There are a number of jobs to do repeatedly throughout the fire season. Try not to overwhelm yourselves by allowing tasks to accumulate for you to do at the last minute. Most of these tasks are about removing fine fuels that can catch fire if embers land on your property.

Leaf buildup is perfect tinder for a fire, so periodically clearing leaves from your gutters is absolutely critical. Get rid of any dried grass, leaves or twigs from around your house and garden, as these can trap embers and create fuel for the fire. Regularly mow and water your lawn to help slow a fire down.

[Gentle music continues]

On hot, dry and windy days when there's a high risk of fire, there are some last minute jobs to be done.

Houses have been known to catch fire from an ember landing on a doormat, so bring those doormats inside. And whilst you're at it, remove any other items that could catch fire, like dog beds, rubbish, or outdoor furniture on your decks or verandas.

Wherever you see leaves accumulating around your home is generally where the wind will carry embers. Clean up leaf litter in corners and doorways to prevent embers starting a fire.

[Gentle music continues]

Many of us are lucky enough to live in this beautiful Victorian landscape. Doing so comes with certain risks and responsibilities.

Preparing your property before and during fire season is a small price to pay for this lifestyle, and can help improve the chances of your house surviving a fire.

What are you going to do to prepare for fire this season?

[Gentle music ending]

Lawns

Keep lawns short, between 5 and 10 centimetres.

This reduces the amount of grass that can burn, but lets the lawn hold some moisture so it doesn't burn as easily.

Garden beds

Take out any dead plants, shrubs or trees as they burn easily
Keep plants well-watered so they take longer to catch fire and burn
Remove weeds
Make sure mulch isn't able to burn by using material like stones or pebbles

Shrubs

Cut back shrubs regularly to keep them contained
Keep them well watered
Replace dead or diseased plants
Remove fine, dead material from shrubs like branches, leaves and twigs
Separate them from each other by cutting back branches

Trees

Make sure there is space between the ground and branches, to stop fire moving quickly from the ground into the tree.

Cut back branches to leave a gap of 2 metres between the ground and the bottom of trees
Trim shrubs under trees so there is 2 metres between the shrubs and the trees
Remove bark ribbons or strips hanging from trees within 2 metres of the ground
Cut back any tree branches overhanging your house or deck
Remove dead branches
Remove or cut back shrubs and plants under trees

Check the rules before you clear vegetation on your property.

Don't leave piles of green waste near your home as they become fuel for a bushfire. Get rid of them before the warmer season. Learn when and how you can burn off.