Action sheet — Before the fire
Switch to mineral mulch near the walls
The pine bark mulch decorating the base of your flowerbeds is… small, graded wood chips. If it’s less than three metres from a building façade, replace it with gravel, pebbles or pozzolan: the same benefits for your plants, but no combustible material under your windows.
Key points
- The 3-metre rule: no dry organic mulch (bark, wood chips, straw) should be placed against walls or beneath windows.
- Substitutes: pozzolan, crushed gravel, pebbles, crushed slate — on permeable geotextile.
- Beds that are further away can retain the mulch — which should be kept moist.
- Bonus: less regrowth, no need for annual replacement, and better water retention.
Equipment: pozzolan/gravel/pebbles · permeable geotextile fabric · wheelbarrow, rake
Why it’s important
A layer of bark mulch in July contains a few per cent moisture: a single spark sets it alight, and the fire spreads along the ground to the window frames, the cladding and the open French window. Post-fire photographs often show this tell-tale sign: the black line of the mulched flowerbed leading straight to the point where the fire entered the house. The mineral provides the same horticultural benefits (retaining moisture, preventing weeds) and constitutes a decorative fire barrier strip — the first of the concentric zones of the defensive garden.
How to do it, step by step
Select the area to be converted
Any flowerbed within 3 metres of a façade, a wooden decking area or the emergency exit gate. The rest of the garden can wait.
Dispose of organic waste
Rake the bark and wood chips down to the soil. Reuse them on flowerbeds that are FAR AWAY (more than 10 metres away) or compost them.
Lay down a permeable felt
Geotextile cut to fit around the base of the plants: it prevents weeds from growing without smothering the soil. Never use a waterproof plastic sheet.
Spread the mineral
4–5 cm thick: pozzolan (lightweight, well-draining, attractive), crushed gravel or pebbles, depending on the style. Loosen the soil around the bases of the plants slightly.
Adjust the watering
The mineral retains moisture well but heats up on the surface: use drip irrigation UNDER the mulch, and water less frequently but more deeply.
The mistakes that ruin everything
- Convert the flowerbed… whilst leaving the coconut fibre doormat and the peat planters right next to the door.
- Laying gravel on a plastic sheet: compacted soil, water running off, plants dying off.
- Avoid using black pebbles facing south on delicate plants — this can cause root burn in summer (opt for lighter colours instead).
- Leaving a ‘decorative border’ of bark between the gravel and the façade, which spoils the whole effect.
The tip that makes all the difference
The dark red pozzolan hides the pine needles that accumulate between clean-ups and blends in well with Mediterranean plants — it is the choice of landscape gardeners in high-risk areas.
Frequently Asked Questions
The risk changes every day. So do your reflexes.
Check the fire alert status for your department, keep track of current fires and report a fire via the Feux de Forêt mobile app.