Colorado’s natural beauty attracts homeowners who want to live close to the mountains, foothills, and open spaces. But living in what’s known as the wildland-urban interface—where homes intermingle with forests and grasslands—also brings a heightened risk of wildfire. With hotter summers and drier conditions, creating defensible space around your home is no longer optional; it’s essential.
Is Your Home Ready for Wildfire Season? How Defensible Space Can Save It
The Back 40 Team
What is Defensible Space?
Defensible space is the buffer you create between your home and the surrounding vegetation. This buffer reduces the chance that a wildfire will reach your house and gives firefighters a safer area to defend it. Properly designed defensible space isn’t just about cutting trees—it’s about carefully converting fuel types from more hazardous to less hazardous, limiting the continuity of fuels, and maintaining a lean and green buffer immediately surrounding your home.
The benefits extend beyond your own property. Vegetation management mimics fire’s natural role in shaping landscapes by removing excess fuel, sustaining healthier plant communities, and reducing the likelihood of extreme fires that devastate entire regions.
Breaking Down the Defensible Space Zones
Wildfire professionals recommend approaching defensible space in zones that radiate outward from your home. Each zone has its own management practices.
Zone 1 (0–5 feet): This is the most critical area and should be kept completely free of flammable vegetation. Replace grass and shrubs with non-combustible hardscaping materials like gravel, stone, or pavers. If plants are included, choose only low-growing, fire-resistant species. Pine needles, leaves, and other debris should be cleared regularly to prevent accumulation.
Zone 2 (5–30 feet): This zone requires active vegetation management to reduce fuel continuity. Grasses should be mowed to a height of 4–6 inches twice a season—once in June or July, and again in September or October. Trees in this zone should be pruned so that their lowest branches are 6–10 feet above the ground, or no more than one-third of the tree’s total height for smaller specimens. Tree canopies should be spaced at least 18 feet apart on flat ground, with spacing increasing on steeper slopes. Shrubs should be thinned into small, separated clusters rather than continuous thickets.
Zone 3 (30–100 feet): The extended zone is about slowing fire’s spread before it reaches your home. Trees should be thinned more aggressively here, with canopies 12 feet apart in the 30–60 foot range and 6 feet apart between 60–100 feet. Dead or downed vegetation should be removed, and continuous stretches of brush should be broken up to create natural fire breaks.
Managing Fuels Effectively
Within all zones, special attention should be given to ladder fuels—vegetation that allows fire to climb from the ground into tree canopies. These include shrubs under trees or low-hanging branches. By pruning trees to raise their crowns and removing understory growth, you can prevent fire from moving upward into the canopy, where it spreads more rapidly and burns more intensely.
Slash and debris from tree trimming or shrub removal should never be left in place. Instead, material can be chipped on-site, hauled to a recycling facility, or otherwise processed. In some cases, disturbed soils may need reseeding with native grasses to stabilize the ground and prevent erosion. If stumps are left behind, applying herbicide concentrate immediately after cutting can prevent resprouting—an especially effective method in the fall.
While coniferous ornamental trees and tall grasses may be visually appealing, they tend to be highly flammable. Replacing them with fire-resistant plantings or non-combustible hardscape materials reduces risk significantly.
Safety and Maintenance Considerations
Wildfire mitigation is not a one-time task—it requires consistent upkeep. Grass and weeds will return, shrubs will resprout, and pine needles will fall year after year. Homeowners should plan to revisit mowing, pruning, and debris removal on a seasonal basis. Shrubs may require more aggressive treatment every three to five years, while trees may need periodic crown lifting and spacing adjustments as they mature.
When operating equipment during dry months, safety is critical. Spark arresters should be used on engines, fire extinguishers should be nearby, and smoking should be strictly prohibited on the work site. Using electric trimmers and blowers is encouraged to minimize ignition risks.
How We Can Help
At Back 40 Land Management, we know that creating and maintaining defensible space can feel overwhelming. Every property is unique, and what works for one homeowner might not be enough for another. Our team specializes in defensible space projects tailored to each site. We offer:
Grass mowing and weed control to keep fuels low during fire season.
Shrub thinning, small-to-medium tree removal, and crown raising to reduce ladder fuels.
On-site chipping and hauling of woody debris to recycling centers.
Fire-wise landscaping and installation of hardscaping elements.
Guidance on plant selection, soil stabilization, and long-term maintenance plans.
We don’t just provide labor—we bring expertise. Each project includes someone who understands the why behind the work, ensuring the job is done safely, effectively, and in line with best practices promoted by wildfire mitigation programs.
Protect Your Home and Community Today
Wildfire season is coming whether we’re ready or not. The question is: will your property be prepared? By creating defensible space, you not only reduce your own risk but also protect your neighbors, firefighters, and the natural landscapes we all treasure.
Back 40 Land Management can help you take the first step toward peace of mind. Reach out to us today to schedule a consultation and let us turn wildfire mitigation into a reality on your property.