Fuel Modification · Deerlake Ranch & the Santa Susanas

Plant it so it survives the fire it was built for.

An interactive field guide to fire-wise plant selection in Chatsworth’s wildland-urban interface. Know your zones, know what’s banned, and browse every approved species by zone — with photos.

A & BThe zones
that matter
200′From any
structure
200+Approved
species
Read on
Why this matters here

Chatsworth lives on the edge of the wild.

Neighborhoods like Deerlake Ranch sit directly against the Santa Susana foothills — beautiful, and squarely inside a Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zone. That’s why every planting plan here is reviewed under Fuel Modification guidelines before it goes in the ground.

Fuel Modification isn’t about clearing everything. It’s about arrangement: choosing low-moisture, low-litter species and spacing them so a ground fire never finds a ladder up into the canopy and onto your roof. Done well, it reads as a lush, designed landscape — not a firebreak.

This guide turns the Deerlake Ranch plant guidelines into something you can use: what Zones A and B mean, the placement rules, the prohibited species, and a searchable photo gallery of what’s approved — so the plan you submit gets stamped the first time.

The single rule behind all of it

Eliminate the fuel ladder — the unbroken chain of grass → shrub → low branch → canopy that lets a small fire climb into a big one.

Break the vertical and horizontal continuity and you’ve done most of the job. Every “do” and “don’t” here traces back to that one idea.

The Framework

Two zones do most of the work.

Plant density increases as you move away from the house — lean and low up close, fuller and well-spaced farther out. Distances are measured from any qualifying structure or the property line, whichever comes first.

ZONE A · 0–30′ZONE B · 30–100′ZONE C · 100–200′WILDLAND Lean near the house → fuller, well-spaced farther out → never continuous with the wild.
A
0–30′ from structure

Planted lean

The defensible core — keep it low and sparse.
  • Herbaceous & succulent plants under 2–3′, or irrigated, mown lawn
  • No woody trees or shrubs within 10′ of the house
  • Hardscape belongs closest to the walls
B
30–100′ from structure

Spaced & layered

Slightly denser — the place for shade trees.
  • Larger shade trees allowed if canopies stay separated
  • Screen plantings OK; avoid solid hedging
  • Nothing over 3′ at maturity directly beneath a canopy
C
100–200′ from structure

Managed brush

Often unplanted, still cleared.
  • Do not denude the property — clearance, not bare dirt
  • If landscaped, don’t exceed Zone B density
Access
Roads
Fire apparatus access

Clear to the sky

Keep the path open.
  • Maintain a 20′-wide path that stays clear to the sky
  • No overhanging canopy that blocks access
Placement

How you arrange it matters more than what it is.

Do

Build separation in

  • +Use mass plantings of groundcovers or succulents — properly spaced, they break up fuel ladders
  • +Plant for near-complete coverage at maturity, not “instant landscape” density today
  • +Choose slow growers that reach a manageable size — scale the plant to the house
  • +Consider patio trees as an informal screen in Zone A, and vines on free-standing walls 10′+ out
Don’t

Create a ladder

  • ×Plant hedges against the house, or any hedge over 6′ within 10′ of a structure
  • ×Run large shrubs or trees in continuous lines or solid masses through Zones A & B
  • ×Plant oversized species and “control” them by pruning — pick the right size instead
  • ×Grow vines on the structure itself — they become an ember-catching fuel bed
  • ×Assume anything is “fireproof.” Every plant burns; arrangement is the safeguard
Not Permitted

The plants that won’t get approved.

These genera are excluded from any approved Fuel Modification plan — high in oils, resins, or dead litter, or aggressively invasive. Tap any plant for the full picture.

Italian Cypress
Banned · flagged often

Italian Cypress

Cupressus spp.
Eucalyptus
Banned

Eucalyptus

Eucalyptus spp.
Pampas Grass
Banned · invasive

Pampas Grass

Cortaderia spp.
Chamise
Banned

Chamise

Adenostoma fasciculatum

Full prohibited list

Excluded from approved Fuel Modification plans. Some dwarf or prostrate cultivars within a listed genus may be acceptable — confirm before specifying.

  • ChamiseAdenostoma fasciculatum
  • Red ShankAdenostoma sparsifolium
  • California SagebrushArtemisia californica
  • Common BuckwheatEriogonum fasciculatum
  • Pampas GrassCortaderia spp.
  • CypressCupressus spp.
  • EucalyptusEucalyptus spp.
  • Italian JasmineJasminum humile
  • Cape PlumbagoPlumbago auriculata
  • Cape HoneysuckleTecoma capensis
  • Hottentot Fig / Ice PlantCarpobrotus edulis

Also avoid any plant on the California Invasive Plant Council list. When in doubt, check cal-ipc.org before it goes on the plan.

The Full Gallery

Browse approved plants by zone.

Pick a zone, narrow by plant type, or search a name. Each plant shows what it looks like — tap any card to open it full-size with its details. Photos load automatically from Wikimedia Commons.

Showing every approved species across Zones A and B.
Chatsworth Landscape

Designing a fire-wise yard in Chatsworth?

We design and build landscapes that pass HOA and Fuel Modification review the first time — from the planting plan to the stamp to the finished install. Tell us about your property.

Request a consultationCall (424) 508-5174