Horticulturist of the year and licensed design/build contractor, Greg Rubin presented a live and recorded webinar on February 22nd to educate landscape professionals on best practices for fire resistant landscapes.

Amid a seemingly endless fire season and a push for less ornamental grass, Rubin's CEU approved course was an in-depth take on implementing better ecological practices to prevent fire devastation.

Rubin talked about types of ignition sources, fuel management zones, and better solutions to implement into your landscapes.

He went on to talk about the multi-year grant that he received from the U.S. Navy to study fire resistance in native landscapes and how that study has allowed him to learn more about best ways to prevent fire damage.

 

Attendees learned about soil, irrigation, and maintenance practices that can help homeowners and larger scale projects alike, protect their structures and have beautiful landscapes in the process.

To earn LA/CES HSW, APLD, PGMS, and NALP CEUs OnDemand, click here to sign up for the session.

Learning Objectives:
1. General principles for native landscape design, installation, & maintenance.
2. Special maintenance and pest control needs of native firescapes.
3. Maintaining hydration is the key to fire resistance, not plant selection.

Webinar Description:
This will be an in-depth presentation on the successful design, installation, and maintenance needs of firescapes comprised of native plants. Having had 20 landscapes involved in major fire events, without the loss of a single home, a well-designed and maintained native landscape may actually be one of the MOST fire resistant choices available. Many of the protocols are different from classical ornamental horticulture, as native success is based on emulating their natural ecology, rather than promoting agricultural-derived methodology. The results of our 4-year research project for the U.S. Navy, examining the phenomenon of native landscape fire resistance, will be discussed, as well as actual case histories with photos. As confirmed in the study, it turns out the most important factor in the fire resistance of landscapes is adequate hydration. Since relatively little supplemental irrigation is required to maintain this level of hydration in native plants, fire resistance is being achieved at a minimal level of support, along with creating fantastic habitat, year-round beauty, and lower maintenance.

Gregory Rubin
Greg Rubin was named the 2018 Horticulturist of the Year by the San Diego Horticultural Society. He is the president and founder of California's Own Native Landscape Design, Inc., and is a licensed design/build landscape contractor (C-27 No. 717147) who has been working with California native plants since 1985. His company has designed over 800 residential, commercial, and institutional native landscapes in Southern California.
Specialties include year-round appeal, low maintenance, water efficiency, rich habitat, and fire-resistance. Greg has been featured in many prominent publications and media outlets, and regularly gives presentations and workshops throughout California.

In 2021-22 Greg participated on an advisory panel to create a County Native Landscape Model Ordinance which was passed unanimously. He is also known for his expertise and success with fire-resistant native landscapes, and in 2014 Greg's company was selected by the US Navy to conduct a scientific research project studying the fire-resistant properties of properly designed native landscapes, with very positive results.
Greg is co-author, with Lucy Warren, of "The California Native Landscape: The Homeowner's Design Guide to Restoring its Beauty and Balance and "The Drought Defying California Garden", published by Timber Press. His website is: www.calown.com.