Wildfire Tree Hazards: Warning Signs to Watch for on Your Property
Take a good look at the trees on your property and ask yourself if any of them are primed to feed a fast fire. You might want to see what dead branches are overhanging the roofline these days. And consider whether you have a handle on how the trees in your home’s vicinity can stifle a wildfire or be complicit in its spread.
For those in Napa, Sonoma, Mendocino and Marin counties, it is important to give such questions due consideration. Image Tree Pros has been in this corner of Northern California since 1990; our ISA Certified Arborists have an intimate knowledge of what wildfire risk is like when you are up close with it. A phone call to (707) 394-9078 will put us in touch and we will make sure you know what to be on the lookout for.
The region is lovely but there is no denying it is high-risk country for wildfires. Under the right conditions, the very trees that provide character and shade to your grounds turn into fuel. Happily, one need only to be aware of the indicators to spot most hazards. Our arborists would point out the following.
Dead, Dying or Diseased Specimens
You will not find a more obvious hazard than a dead tree. The wood is dry, the branches brittle, and they will burn hot and fast. We also take note of trees under the thumb of disease or pests; a stressed tree will shed its foliage and drop debris in a way a healthy one does not.
Indications of a tree in trouble include:
- Bare or leafless branches in large measure while the season is for growing
- Bark on the trunk that is peeling or has cracked off
- Fungal growth or mushrooms where the trunk meets the ground
- Limbs that are dead and will snap rather than bend
- Cavities or wood that sounds hollow
- Leaves browning or falling before their time
Home and Roof Proximity
An overhanging limb is a straight shot for fire to your house. Embers go far in a wildfire and will find purchase on a branch that is against a gutter or roofline. Put in some distance from chimneys, power lines and decks and you mitigate the risk. Should you see branches making contact with your siding or eaves, have them pruned back.
Ladder Fuels and Dense Growth
How a fire makes its way up is a hazard too often ignored. “Ladder fuels” in the form of tall grass, shrubs and low branches will transport a ground fire to the canopy. From the crown of a tree it is all but impossible to control and the fire will run with it.
On your property, look for:
- Brush or shrubs right under a big tree
- Branches a few feet off the ground at best
- Canopies of adjacent trees touching
- Dry weeds or grass at the base of trunks
- An accumulation of fallen limbs, needles and leaves
Debris and Spacing Issues
Seasons come and go and you will have a quiet build up of pine needles, dead wood and leaves. All of it dries to tinder. Part of any fire prevention clearance is to space your trees properly and remove the fuel in between. Putting defensible space around the home is perhaps the best thing to do ahead of fire season.
Structures, Fences and Power Lines
A tree bearing down on a wooden fence, deck or shed can bring the fire to your door. There are serious concerns with trees in the vicinity of power lines and we leave that to the professionals. With staff holding the ISA Tree Risk Assessment Qualification and as Certified Tree Care Safety Professionals, we are equipped to deal with it.
Making Use of a Professional
While some things are apparent from the ground, a professional tree risk assessment is the only way to be certain of a tree’s health and how it will fare in a fire. It will tell you what to keep and what requires removal or pruning.
We are a family operation at Image Tree Pros and have put in over 7,500 projects in and around communities like Santa Rosa, Petaluma, Novato, Windsor and Calistoga in addition to Napa and Sonoma. We are TCIA Accredited (CSLB #719689) and have 24/7 emergency service for when a storm or other hazard is not something you can put off. Free estimates are available.
There is no reason to let fire season come as a surprise. Let our certified arborists at Image Tree Pros do their part in lessening the hazard. Call (707) 394-9078 and we will set up a free estimate.