Fires, gardens and fire retardant plants - a bibliography

Compiled from the resources of the Australian National Botanic Gardens Library 6th February 2003,
updated 13 th January 2006.

Anon 1995, ‘Plants recommended for fire prone areas’ Society for Growing Australian Plants Canberra Region Inc Journal, vol. 10, no. 4, pp. 11-13.

Includes list of native plants under the categories: rainforest trees, ground covers, other trees, other small trees/shrubs.

Anon 2000, ‘Fire-retardant plants’ Your Garden, Dec 2000, p. 30.

General advice and lists of plants, exotic and native, that are hard to burn - from the South Australian Country Fire Service.

* Australian Capital Territory. Planning and Land Management 2003, Fire wise home gardens, Planning and Land Management, Canberra, viewed 21 March 2003, http://www.palm.act.gov.au/publications/firewise/gardens.pdf

Brochure provides information for the establishment of a suburban garden to improve protection from bushfire.

*N.b. This PDF version no longer available, now superceded by 2005 version – see below.

ACT Planning & Land Authority 2005, Firewise home gardens, ACTPLA, Canberra, viewed 9 December 2005, http://www.actpla.act.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0011/2045/gardens.pdf

Brochure provides information for the establishment of a suburban garden to improve protection from bushfire. Includes plant suggestions.

Arthur Yates & Co. 2002, ‘Special conditions – gardening in fire-prone areas’, in Yates garden guide, Angus & Robertson, Pymble, N.S.W., pp. 386-391.

General principles plus annotated lists of plants under categories of groundcovers, shrubs and perennials, and trees.

Australian Plant Study Group 1990, ‘Fire-retarders’ in Grow what where : over 2,750 Australian native plants for every situation, special use and problem area, Viking O’Neil, South Yarra, Vic., pp. 42-43.

List of 76 Australian native plant species.

Barr, D 2004, ‘APS members revisit last year’s bushfires’, Growing Australian : quarterly publication of the Australian Plants Society Victoria, vol, 48, no. 2, pp. 15-16.

Recovery of a home garden at Cobungra, between Omeo and Dinner Plain, more than twelve months after the 2003 bushfires.

Boden, R 1994, ‘No trees, no bushfires – but ?’, Australian Garden Journal, vol. 14, no. 1, pp. 18-22.

Effect of fire on native plants, species selection for fire-prone areas, in particular urban bushland fringes.

Byrne, J 2005, ‘Bushfire protection’, Gardening Australia, January 2006, pp. 54-55.

Brief article including mention of fire-retardant plants.

Cheney, NP 1985, ‘Living with fire’ in Think trees grow trees, Australian Government Publishing Service, Canberra, pp. 69-85.

Analysis of previous bushfires, strategies for protection and fire suppression, brief advice on selection and management of trees for fire protection.

*Country Fire Authority 1997, ‘Plants for your bush garden’ in Living in the bush, CFA Headquarters, Burwood East, Vic., pp. 12-15. Also viewed 21 March 2003 at < http://www.cfa.vic.gov.au/cfa_main.htm >

Selection, location, arrangement, management of plants. Lists of introduced plants, ground covers, native trees & shrubs that are hard to burn.

*N.b. this version no longer available. Now replaced by a new 2004 edition, see below.

Country Fire Authority 2004, ‘Vegetation management’ in Living in the bush, CFA Headquarters, Burwood East, Vic., pp. 11-14. Also available as a CDROM. Also viewed 9 th December 2005 at http://www.cfa.vic.gov.au/residents/living/litb-workbook.htm

General principles of vegetation management including fuel reduction, weed removal, maintenance of moisture levels, mulching and shelterbreaks. Plant selection is dealt with only very generally, distinguishes between fire-retardant and fire-resistant plants, and there is no longer a list of suitable plants.

Cremer, CW 1990, ‘Fire’ in Cremer, CW (ed), Trees for rural Australia, Inkata Press, Melbourne, pp. 232-242.

Deals with direct injuries caused by fire to plants, ecological effects are not considered. Also discusses prevention of fire damage and choice of species.

Elliot, G 1986, ‘Planting in areas of high bushfire risk’ in Gwen Elliot’s Australian garden : the essential gardener’s guide, Hyland House, South Melbourne, pp. 49-51.

Concept of shelterbelt plantings to reduce wind speed and intensity. Short list of hardy and adaptable fire tolerant plants.

Elliot, G 2002, ‘Australian plants for gardens of high fire risk’ Australian Horticulture, vol. 100, no. 2, p. 19.

Discusses some native plants which are slow to catch alight including saltbushes, some myoporums and plants from dry inland areas.

Elliot, WR & Jones, DL 1980, ‘Plants for various purposes – fire retardant properties’ in Encyclopaedia of Australian plants suitable for cultivation, Lothian, Melbourne, p. 299.

List of 48 native species.

Forests Commission of Victoria 1983, ‘Trees and fire resistance’ Your Garden, Dec 1983, pp. 11-13.

French, J 2003, Jackie French’s tips on creating a fire proof garden, ABC Canberra. Viewed 13 th December 2005, < http://www.abc.net.au/canberra/stories/s778007.htm >

General tips based on Jackie French’s own research.

Gill, AM 1981, ‘Adaptive responses of Australian vascular species to fires’ in Gill, AM, Groves, RH & Noble, RI (eds), Fire and the Australian biota, Australian Academy of Science, Canberra, pp. 243-272.

Reviews the literature on adaptive traits such as vegetative survival, fire-stimulated flowering, on-plant seed storage, fire-stimulated dispersal, and in-soil storage.

Gill, AM 1981 ‘Coping with fire’ in Pate, JS & McComb, AJ (eds), The biology of Australian plants, University of Western Australia Press, Nedlands, pp. 65-87.

A review of how plant species cope with fire at the individual, population and species levels.

Gill, AM & Bradstock, RA 1992, ‘A national register for the fire responses of plant species’ Cunninghamia, vol. 2, no. 4, pp. 653-660.

Describes a register in which 1,500 vascular plant species have been classified in relation to their fire responses. Will assist in the development of practical scientifically-based monitoring systems for fire-prone plant species.

Gill, AM & Moore PHR 1996, Ignitibility of leaves of Australian plants, a contract report to the Australian Flora Foundation, CSIRO, Canberra. 34 pp.

Unpublished report. Laboratory tests of ignitibility of leaves of 50 species of Australian native plants.

Gowing, L 2005, ‘Recovery of Australian plants following bushfire’, Journal, Australian Plants Society, S.A. Region, vol. 18, no. 7, pp.263-267.

Compilation of information from people’s experiences following fires in South Australia in 1983 and 2005.

Heinjus, D 1992, ‘Trees and fire protection’ in Farm tree planting, South Australian Department of Agriculture in association with Inkata Press, [ Adelaide].

Types of trees with low flammability ratings. Lists of introduced species and native species.

Kinsey, M 1999, ‘Gardens can provide bushfire protection’, Australian Horticulture, vol. 97, no. 2, p. 10.

Brief article on suitable plants, garden layout and maintenance.

McCarthy, GJ, Tolhurst, KC & Chatto, K 1999, Overall fuel hazard guide, 3 rd edn., Fire management research report no 47, Department of Natural Resources and Environment, Fire Management Branch, East Melbourne.

Also available on the Internet, viewed 13 December 2005, < http://www.dpi.vic.gov.au/dse/nrenfoe.nsf/FID/-B975E74F702B0C654A2568620081B100?OpenDocument>

Intended to assist fire control operations or prescribed burns. Include description and assessment of bark fuel hazard, particularly in relation to different eucalypt species.

Moore, G 1995, ‘Bushfires : nature’s renewal and the rebirth of a garden’, Australian Garden History, vol. 6, no. 4, pp. 26-30.

The effects of bushfires on natural, semi-natural and created garden sites at Mount Macedon in 1983 are reviewed.

Moore, G 2003, Strategies to reduce bushfire damage in gardens, Global Garden Pty Ltd, Camberwell, Vic. Viewed 21 March 2003, < http://www.global-garden.com.au/burnley/feb00dte.htm >

Influence of garden plant selection, mulching materials, and immediate post-fire procedures to save damaged plants.

Muller, G 2005, ‘Bushfires and Australian plants’, Australian Plants Society S.A. Region Journal, vol. 18, no. 6, pp. 228-229.

General advice on fire retardant plants and shrubs for South Australia, following the Eyre Peninsula fires.

Natural Resources Conservation League of Victoria 1992, ‘Top 20 fire retardant species’, Trees and Natural Resources, vol. 32, no. 4, p. 24.

Trees suitable for planting near homes and sheds.

NSW Rural Fire Service 2005, Trees and fire resistance. Regeneration & care of fire-damaged trees, NSW Rural Fire Service, Rosehill, NSW, viewed 9 th December 2005, <http://www.bushfire.nsw.gov.au/file_system/attachments/State/attachment_20050526_54290D54.pdf>

Yard and property layout, damage caused by fire, recovery, reshooting, regrowth and tree maintenance.

Oates, N 1987, ‘Regeneration of windbreaks’, Trees and Natural Resources, vol. 29, no. 3, pp. 2-3.

Notes on regeneration following fire on a farm at Streatham in western Victoria.

Petris, S 1992, ‘Planting trees to enhance bushfire safety’, Trees and Natural Resources, vol. 34, no. 4, pp. 17-19.

Discusses the impact trees can have on bushfire safety.

Ramsay, C & Rudolph, L 2003, Landscape and building design for bushfire areas, CSIRO Publishing, Collingwood, Vic.

Ch 4, ‘Evaluation of vegetation for use in landscaping’, ch. 6, ‘Landscape design’ and ch. 7, ‘Landscape design options’ provide a sound basis for the selection of plants and design elements in new and remodelled gardens.

Rosten, N 2004, ‘Post-fire regeneration’, Native Plants for New South Wales, vol. 39, no. 2, p. 20.

Note on regeneration of plants in a native garden and on the potential of non-local plants to become weedy.

Rudolph, L 1993, ‘Vegetation and bushfires. Part 1, The behaviour of vegetation as applied to the landscaping around buildings in bushfire areas – a review and evaluation’, Landscape Australia, vol. 15, no. 1, pp. 17-23.

Review of developments to 1993 and lists 14 attributes of plants which are relevant to their fire behaviour.

Rudolph, L 1993 ‘Vegetation and bushfires. Part 2, A system for the assessment of the behaviour of vegetation as applied to the landscaping around buildings in bushfire areas’, Landscape Australia, vol. 15, no. 2, pp. 113-114.

Proposed system is based on three broad performance characteristics, ie. flammability, provision of fuel and barrier-forming ability.

Sanderson, R 1989, ‘Just six years after the bushfires : restored gardens with contrasting philosophies’, Landscape Australia, vol. 11, no. 2, pp. 159-162.

The Simpson garden in the Macedon Ranges is a semi-natural garden restored following the 1983 bushfires.

Sanderson, R 1989, ‘Just six years after the bushfires : restored gardens with contrasting philosophies’, Landscape Australia, vol. 11, no. 3, pp. 275-278.

The Hutton garden at Mount Macedon is an exotic garden restored following the 1983 bushfires.

Scurfield, G, Ashton, DH 1983, ‘After Ash Wednesday “ the first twelve weeks’, Trees and Natural Resources, vol. 25, no. 3, pp. 2-7.

Regrowth and regeneration of native plants in various Victorian locations following the 1983 bushfires.

Simpfendorfer, KJ 1989, Trees, farms and fires, Lands and Forests bulletin no. 30, Department of Conservation, Forests and Lands, East Melbourne.

A 55p. publication which includes a list of c300 species, detailing their growth and fire aspects (crown density, bark, volatile oils, and regeneration after fire).

Simpson, J 2000, ‘FAQS : fire retardant plants’ Society for Growing Australian Plants Canberra Region Inc Journal, vol. 12, no. 3, March 2000.

Includes list of native plants under the categories: rainforest trees, other trees, shrubs, prostrate & small.

U’Ren, A 2005, ‘The value of moss’, Growing Australian, Official Quarterly Publication of Australian Plants Society (SGAP Victoria) Inc., vol. 49, no. 3, p. 37.

Moss helped stop soil erosion and provided a seed bed for eucalypts seedlings following the January 2003 bushfires.

Webster, J 2000, ‘Fire retardant plants’ Trees and Natural Resources, vol. 42, no. 3, pp. 21-23.

Factors influencing the degree of fire retardance of a tree or shrub. Includes a 2 p. list compiled in consultation with environmental scientists and plant study groups, based on anecdotal evidence.

Webster, JK 2001, ‘A protective garden’ in Essential bushfire safety tips, Random House, Milsons Point, NSW, pp. 99-104.

General principles, characteristics of hazardous and fire-retardant plants.

Webster, JK 2000, The complete bushfire safety book, 3 rd rev. edn., Random House, Milsons Point, NSW.

One chapter titled “Planting for bushfire protection” covers the fire-retardance aspects of trees or shrubs and includes list of fire retardant plants. The book also includes a couple of pages on care of fire-damaged trees.

Woollett, M 1994, ‘Plants for fire prone areas’ Native Plants for New South Wales, vol. 29, no.1, pp. 24-25.