Deer and Fire List

In general, watering makes the plant more fire resistant and less deer resistant.

An explanation of these numbers is given at the bottom of this table.
See also leaf burn times.

Generally California native plants tolerant California deer and fire much better than plants from anywhere else.

Deer at dusk standing in weedy grasses. If the grass burns it takes all the native plants with it. No food and the deer come to your garden. - grid24_12

Genus/Species	Common Name	Deer Proof by# 10 usually safe to 1 totally destroyed	fire (burn times, in seconds/plant height, in meters, max 10) nothing is 'safe" but some are best(>60,low and/or burns poorly), better(30, medium height, medium burn), or you should think about it(<1, high and flash)	Deer Comments
Abies bracteata	Santa Lucia Fir	8	2,usually safe if no fire ladder present	usually safe
Acacia Greggii	Catclaw	10	20, creates a lot of debris	very thorny but even gallon stock not bothered
Acer circinatum	Vine Maple	7	5	Japanese Maple should be similar
Acer macrophyllum	Big Leaf Maple	8	6, flashy	protect when young
Acer negundo	California Box Elder	9	female 1.5, male more like 5	bothers only seedlings on really bad years
Achillea millefolium californica	Yarrow	9	5, if regularly mowed 60	usually dormant when deer worst
Adenostoma fasciculatum	Chamise	6	15, yes, it's really not that bad	they browse but don't destroy
Adiantum	jordanii	9	60(disappears in summer)
Aesculus calif	Buckeye	7	8	poisonous to all (but gophers & deer have eaten)
Agave deserti	Century Plant	8	600	on bad years they roll out new plants and eat bottom
Agave utahensis	Century Plant	10	600	"
Alnus rhombifolia	White Alder	2	1.5, ok if no fire ladder present	water lover, eat the poo out of them on bad years
Amelanchier alnifolia	Western Service Berry	5		Great bird plant
Amorpha californica	False Indigo	10		smelly chaparral plant
Aquilegia eximia	Red Columbine	6	100+ unless you let the debris build up	Pretty perennial
Aquilegia formosa	Western Columbine	6	100+ unless you let the debris build up	Pretty perennial
Aquilegia pubescens	Sierra Columbine	6	100+ unless you let the debris build up	Pretty perennial
Aquilegia shockleyi	Desert Columbine	6	100+ unless you let the debris build up	Pretty perennial
Arbutus Menziesii	Madrone	9	4.5	Structure safe
Arctostaphylos spp.	Manzanitas	9 ( if native in area)		are much more deer resistant in their native areas, gray ones more deer proof
Arctostaphylos crustacea	Brittleleaf Manzanita	5
Arctostaphylos densiflora	'Harmony'	4	60	Only eaten on bad years in some locales
Arctostaphylos densiflora	'Howard McMinn'	4	12	They will eat every leaf,but no stems in bad areas
Arctostaphylos densiflora	'Sentinel'	8	30	not bothered
Arctostaphylos Edmundsii	Sur Manzanita	7	300	very low plant
Arctostaphylos Edmundsii	'Danville'	4	probably 100
Arctostaphylos glauca	Big Berry Manzanita	9	5	They usually don't bother this
Arctostaphylos Hookeri	'Monterey Carpet'	4		They will eat every leaf, but leave stems in bad areas
Arctostaphylos Hookeri	'Wayside'	4	120	They will eat every leaf, but leave stems in bad areas
Arctostaphylos manzanita	'Dr. Hurd'	9	3	They usually don't bother this
Arctostaphylos morroensis	Morro Bay manzanita	7	3
Arctostaphylos pajaroensis	Pajaro Manzanita	4	7
Arctostaphylos parryana	Parry Manzanita	6	20
Arctostaphylos pilosula	La Panza Manzanita	6	1
Arctostaphylos pumila	Dune Manzanita	4
Arctostaphylos uva-ursi	Bear Berry Point Reyes	5	600
Arctostaphylos	'Emerald Carpet'	4
Arctostaphylos	'Greensphere'	4		4
Arctostaphylos	'Sunset'	4	60
Argemone munita	Prickly Poppy	5
Armeria maritima var. calif.	Thrift	4
Arnica Parryi Sonnei	Frog flower	5
Artemisia californica	California Sagebrush	5	60, do not allow debris to build up	about September they (and the wabbits) eat the new plants to the ground
Artemisia pycnocephala	Sandhill Sage	4
Artemisia tridentata	Big Basin Sagebrush	9	45
Asarum caudatum	Wild Ginger	7	100+*
Asclepias eriocarpa	Monarch Milkweed	9	60
Asclepias speciosa	Showy Milkweed	9	55
Aster adscendens	Purple Aster	6	600	flat
Atriplex lentiformis Brewer	Brewers Salt Bush	4	20	rabbits will eat until 3' tall
Atriplex canescens	Fourwing Saltbush	4	30
Atriplex hymenelytra	Desert Holly	5	600
Atriplex polycarpa	Alkali Saltbrush	5	30
Baccharis pilularis	"Pigeon Point "or 'Santa Ana'	6	600	after first year browsing is great! Keeps plant low, but first year they rip them out
Baccharis pilularis consanguinea	Coyote Bush	9	8
Beloperone californica	Chuparosa	7	100+*
Betula occidentalis	River Birch	4
Brodiaea puchella	Blue Dicks	8		off season with deer
Calycanthus ccidentalis	Spice Bush	9	30
Carpenteria californica	Bush Anemone	7	25
Ceanothus species are relatively hard to burn and respond well to light overhead watering once every two weeks. A dust- off once every two weeks makes them really hard to burn. Water very much at all and the deer will eat.
Ceanothus arboreus	Island Mountain Lilac	2	3	they eat as high as they can reach
Ceanothus cuneatus	Buckbrush	9	15
Ceanothus foliosus	Scented-leaf	8
Ceanothus gloriosus	Hearts Desire	7	20
Ceanothus griseus	Big Sur Ceanothus	1
Ceanothus griseus	'Louis Edmunds'	1
Ceanothus griseus var. horizon	Yankee Point	1	60
Ceanothus hearstiorum	Carpet Mountain Lilac	7	150
Ceanothus impressus	Santa Barbara Ceanothus	7	12	will eat new grow in bad years, bucks can do a number on it with antlers
Ceanothus integerrimus	Deer Brush	4
Ceanothus Lemmonii	Lemmon's Ceanothus	6
Ceanothus leucodermis	Whitebark Ceanothus	7
Ceanothus	'L.T. Blue'	8	20
Ceanothus maritimus	Maritime Ceanothus	8	300	nearly flat
Ceanothus megacarpus	Bigpod Ceanothus	8	40
Ceanothus papillosus	Wartleaf Ceanothus	8
Ceanothus prostratus	Squaw Carpet	8	600
Ceanothus purpureus	'Mills Glory'	10	30	one of the most deer proof plants we have seen
Ceanothus sorediatus	Jim Bush	7	15
Ceanothus thyrsiflorus	Blue Blossom	5	20
Ceanothus tomentosus olivaceus	Romona Lilac	8
Ceanothus verrucosus	Wartystem Ceanothus	8	38
Ceanothus	'Blue Jeans'	10	30
Ceanothus	'Concha'	7	30	will eat new growth in bad years
Ceanothus	'Dark Star'	8
Ceanothus gloriosus exaltatus	'Emily Brown'	9
Ceanothus gloriosus porrectus		9	600
Ceanothus	'Frosty Blue'	7	10
Ceanothus	'Joyce Coulter'	7	60
Ceanothus	'Julia Phelps'	8	30
Ceanothus	'Mountain Haze'	7	30
Ceanothus	'Ray Hartman'	2	20
Ceanothus cyaneus	'Sierra Blue'	2	5
Ceanothus rigidus	'Snowball'	10	60
Celtis reticulata	Hackberry	8
Cephalanthus occidentalis californica	Buttonwillow	7	15
Cercidium floridium	Palo Verde	5	15
Cercidium microphyllum	Little Leaf Horse Bean	5	15
Cercis occidentalis	Western Redbud	7	15
Cercocarpus alnifolius	Alder Leaf Mountain Mahogany	1	15
Cercocarpus betuloides	Mountain Mahogany	3	15
Cercocarpus ledifolius	Desert Mountain Mahogany	6
Chilopsis linearis	Desert Willow	7	10
Chlorogalum pomeridianum	Soap Plant	7	5	flower stalks are tasty for deer
Clematis ligusticifolia	Virgin's Bower	7	10
Clematis lasiantha	Virgin's Bower	7	10
Comarostaphylis diversifolia	Summer Holly	6	1.5
Cornus glabrata	Brown Stem Dogwood	7	5
Cornus Nuttallii	Mountain Dogwood	6
Cornus sessilis	Forest Dogwood	6
Cornus stolonifera	Redtwig Dogwood	6	2
Cowania mexicana stansburiana	Cliff Rose	5
Crossosoma californicum	Crabapple bush	5
Cupressus Bakeri	Modoc Cypress	10
Cupressus Forbesii	Tecate Cypress	10	8
Cupressus Goveniana ssp. goveniana	Gowen Cypress	10
Cupressus macnabiana	McNab Cypress	10
Cupressus nevadensis	Piute Cypress	10	4
Cupressus Sargentii	Sargent Cypress	10
Delphinium cardinale	Scarlet Larkspur	9
Delphinium Parishii	Sky-Blue Larkspur	9
Dendromecon rigida	Bush Poppy	5	20
Dicentra chrysantha	Golden Ear Drops	8
Diplacus aurantiacus	Sticky Monkey Flower	9	60
Diplacus fasciculatus	Azalea-flowered monkey	8	1	not favorites but will eat
Diplacus longiflorus	Southern Monkey Flower	8	90
Diplacus calycinus	Rock Monkey Flower	8
Diplacus puniceus	Mission Monkey Flower	8	6	Hygine and a little water dramtically helps the numbers on monkeys.
Dodecatheon Clevelandii	Shooting Star	4
Dodecatheon Clevelandii var. insulare		4
Draba oligosperma	Yellow Flowered Moss	9
Dudleya cymosa	Liveforever	7(ducks love)
Dudleya edulis	Narrow Leaf Liveforever	7(ducks love)
Dudleya lanceolata	Liveforever	6	600
Dudleya pulverulenta	Chalk Dudleya	8	600
Dyssodia thurberi	Dainty Yellow Composite	8
Encelia farinosa	Incienso	5	60
Erigeron glaucus	Seaside Daisy	7	300
Eriodictyon californicum	Yerba Santa	8	20
Eriodictyon tomentosum	Wooly Yerba Santa	8	20
Eriogonum arborescens	Santa Cruz Island Buckwheat	3	60
Eriogonum caespitosum	Silver Buckwheat	3
Eriogonum cinereum	Ash-Leaf Buckwheat	3
Eriogonum compositum	Dry Mountain Buckwheat	4
Eriogonum crocatum	Saffron Buckwheat	4
Eriogonum fasciculatum	California Buckwheat	6	60
Eriogonum fasciculatum polifolium	Gray Calif. Buck	6	60
Eriogonum giganteum	Saint Catherine's Lace	6	60	The fire numbers suprised us also.
Eriogonum grande rubescens	Red Buckwheat	5	180
Eriogonum umbellatum	Sulfur Flower	5	100
Eriogonum Wrightii var. subscaposum	High Mountain	5	300
Eriophyllum confertiflorum	Golden Yarrow	6	4
Eriophyllum lanatum var. arachnoideum	Spider Yarrow	6
Erysimum concinnum	Scented Wallflower	5
Erysimum menziesii	Menzes's Wallflower	5
Fallugia paradoxa	Apache Plume	5	30
Ferocactus acanthodes	Barrel Cactus	7	9	on bad years they will eat from bottom up, thorns burn like small twigs
Forestiera neomexicana	Desrt Olive	5
Fragaria californica	Wood Strawberry	9	600
Fragaria chiloensis	Beach Strawberry	9	600
Fraxinus dipetala	Flowering Ash	7	2
Fremontodendron californicum	California Flannel Bush	4	15
Fremontodendron Hybrid (PACIFIC SUNSET)		4	1
Fremontodendron mexicanum	Mexican Flannel	7
Galvezia speciosa	Island Snapdragon	1
Garrya elliptica	'James Roof' SilkTassel	7	4
Haplopappus linearifolius	Narrowleaf Golden Bush	7
Helenium hoopsii	Owlclaws	7	500
Heteromeles arbutifolia	Toyon	7	12
Heuchera micrantha	Alum Root	8
Heuchera pilosissima	Hairy Alum Root	8
Heuchera rubescens var. glandulosa	Dwarf Alum	8
Holodiscus discolor	Cream Bush	6
Hyptis Emoryi	Desert-Lavender	7
Iris Douglasiana	Pacific Coast Iris 1	10
	Pacific Iris	8
Iris longipetala		9
Iris missouriensis	Western Blue Flag	10
Iris Munzii	Tulare Lavender Iris	10
Isomeris arborea	Bladderpod	9
Iva Hayesiana	Hayes Iva	9	60
Juglans hindsii	California Black Walnut	6	6
Juniperus californica	Calif. Juniper	9	10
Keckiella antirrhinoides	Bush Snapdragon	7	60
Keckiella breviflora	Bush Beard-tongue	7	60
Keckiella cordifolia	Climbing Penstemon	7
Keckiella ternatus	Whorl-leaf Penstemon	7
Larrea tridentata	Creosote Bush	9	30
Lavatera assurgentiflora	Malva Rosa	6
Lepechinia calycina	Pitcher Sage	8
Lepechinia fragrans	Island Pitcher Sage	7	30
Lepidium Fremontii	Desert Alyssum	4?
Lewisia Cotyledon	Siskiyou Lewsia	3?
Libocedrus decurrens	Incense Cedar	10	3	bucks will clean antlers on
Lilium Humboltii var. Bloomerianum	Tiger Lily	4		usually dormant summer when deer are out
Lilium pardalinum	Leopard Lily	3		usually dormant summer when deer are out
Lilium Wigginsii		3		usually dormant summer when deer are out
Lithocarpus densiflora	Tan Bark Oak	9	1.5
Lithophragma heterophylla	Woodland Star	6
Lonicera subspicata var. Johnstonii		9
Lonicera hispidula	Calif.Honeysuckle	9	22
Lonicera interrupta	Chaparral Honeysuckle	7	5
Lonicera involucrata	Twinberry	7
Lotus scoparius	Deer Weed	5	60
Lupinus albifrons	Silver Lupine	7	30
Lupinus arboreus	Tree Lupine	7
Lupinus Chamissonis	Silver Beach Lupine	7
Lupinus excubitus		7	60
Machaeranthera tortifolia	Mojave Aster	5?
Mahonia aquifolium	Oregon Grape	6	10
Mahonia nevinii	Nevin's mahonia	6	20
Mahonia repens	Creeping mahonia	6	30
Malacothamnus fasciculatus	Chaparral Bush Mallow	8	30
Malacothamnus niveus	Las Pilitas Bush Mallow	8
Malacothamnus orbiculatus		8	10
Mimulus cardinalis	Scarlet Monkey Flower	5	120
Mimulus tilingii	Creeping Monkey Flower	5	600+
Monardella antonina		8	120
Monardella macrantha	Large Flowered Mon.	8	600
Monardella Palmeri	Purple leaved	8	600
Monardella subglabra	Mint Bush	8
Monardella villosa	Coyote Mint	8	80
Myrica californica	California Wax Myrtle	8	10
Oenothera hookeri	Hooker's Evening Primrose	5	60
Paeonia californica	California Peony	9
Pellaea andromedaefolia	Coffee Fern	9
Pellaea mucronata	Bird Foot Fern	9
Penstemon azureus	Azure Penstemon	7
Penstemon Bridgesii	Red Mountain Fountains	7
Penstemon centranthifolius	Scarlet Bugler	7
Penstemon clevelandii	Cleveland's Penstemon	7
Penstemon Davidsonii	Blue Color Mat	0
Penstemon grinnellii	Bee penstemon	8
Penstemon heterophyllus	Blue Bedder	9	600	Deer eat until established
Penstemon laetus		9
Penstemon labrosus	Scalet Penstemon	7
Penstemon Newberryi sonomensis	Mountain Pride	7	600
Penstemon palmerii	Balloon Flower	9
Penstemon Rattanii	Eel River Penstemon	6
Penstemon Rydbergii	Whorl Penstemon	9
Penstemon spectabilis	Showy Penstemon	7	25
Phacelia Bolanderi	Blue-flowered grape leaf	8
Philadelphus lewisii	Wild Mock Orange	7	20
Physocarpus capitatus	Ninebark	6?	2
Picea engelmannii	Engelman Spruce	8
Pickeringia montana	Chaparrel Pea	8	30
Pinus aristata	Bristlecone Pine	5
Pinus attenuata	Knob-cone pine	5	1
Pinus Coulteri	Coulter Pine	5
Pinus flexilis	Limber Pine	4	2
Pinus jeffreyi	Jeffrey Pine	5	40
Pinus lambertiana	Sugar Pine	4
Pinus monophylla	Pinyon Pine	5	4
Pinus muricata	Bishop Pine	4	4
Pinus Murrayana	Lodgepole Pine	4
Pinus ponderosa	Ponderosa Pine	4	6	Seems to shed leaves better than other oaks
Pinus radiata	Monterey Pine	3	1.5
Pinus radiata macrocarpa	Cambria Pine	3
Pinus remorata	Santa Cruz Island Pine	4
Pinus Sabiniana	Gray Pine	4	4
Pinus torreyana	Torrey Pine	4
Pinus washoensis	Washoe Pine	4
Pityrogramma triangularis	Goldback Fern	10
Platanus racemosa	Sycamore	4	6	not safe until 5' above deer height
Polystichum munitum	Western Sword Fern	10
Populus fremontii	'Zapata' cottonwood	4	6	not safe until 5' above deer height, then ok
Populus trichocarpa	Black Cottonwood	4	6	not safe until 5' above deer height, then ok
Potentilla gracilis	Cinquefoil	5?
Potentilla glandulosa	Cream Colored Cinquefoil	5?
Potentilla pectinisecta		5?
Prosopis glandulosa	Mesquite	7	4
Prosopis pubescens	Screwbean Mesquite	7	6
Prunus andersonii	Desert Peach	7
Prunus fasciculata punctuated	Sand Almond	7
Prunus ilicifolia	Hollyleaf Cherry	6	2
Prunus Lyonii	Catalina Cherry	5	8
Prunus virginiana var. demissa	Choke Cherry	4	3
Prunus melanocarpa		7	13
Pseudotsuga Menziesii	Douglas Fir	8	4
Purshia glandulosa	Waxy Bitterbrush	5	10
Purshia tridentata	Antelope Bush	5	10
Quercus agrifolia	Live Oak	7	1
Quercus Alvordiana		7
Quercus berberidifolia	Scrub Oak	7	3
Quercus chrysolepis	Canyon Live Oak	8	.5
Quercus Douglasii	Blue Oak	7	6
Quercus durata	Leather Oak	8
Quercus Engelmannii	Mesa Oak	7	.7
Quercus Kelloggii	Calif. Black Oak	7	1
Quercus lobata	Valley Oak	5	1.5	Deer ok after 6' tall
Quercus Wislizenii	Interior Live Oak	7	.5
Quercus Wislizenii var. frutescens	Dwarf Live Oak	7
Rhamnus californica	Coffee Berry	8	15
Rhamnus crocea	Redberry	9	20
Rhamnus crocea ilicifolia	Hollyleaf Redberry	9	15
Rhus integrifolia	Lemonadeberry	8	30
Rhus laurina	Laurel Sumac	5	20	Hygine is very important on this plant
Rhus ovata	Sugar Bush	7	20
Rhus trilobata	Squaw Bush	10	20
Ribes aureum gracillimum	Golden Currant	9	25
Ribes californicum	Hillside Currant	8	8
Ribes divaricatum	Nipomo Gooseberry	7
Ribes indecorum	White Flowered Currant	9	30
Ribes malvaceum	Chaparral Currant	9	30
Ribes Menziesii	Canyon Gooseberry	9	30
Ribes quercetorum	Yellow Gooseberry	9	60
Ribes sanguineum glutinosum	Pink-Flowered Currant	9	30
Ribes speciosum	Fuchsia Flowered Currant	9	30
Ribes viburnifolium	Evergreen Currant	9	60
Romneya coulteri	Matilija Poppy	6	10	Without trim down each winter fire .1
Rosa californica	Calif. Wild Rose	7	40
Rosa Woodsii var. glabrata(mohavensis)	Mojave Rose	7	22
Rosa Woodsii var. ultramontana	Fragrant Rose	7
Salix lasiolepis var. braceliniae	Willow	6	3
Salvia apiana	White Sage	7	15
Salvia Brandegei	Island Black Sage	9	60
Salvia clevelandii	Cleveland Sage	9	15
Salvia Dorrii	Purple Desert Sage	9	60
Salvia clev.XS.leu.	'Pozo Blue'	9	15-60 hygine and water
Salvia leucophylla	Purple Sage	9	12
Salvia mellifera	Black Sage	9	20
Salvia mellifera repens	Creeping Black Sage	5	60 with hygine and a little water
Salvia sonomensis	Creeping Sage	5
Salvia spathacea	Hummingbird Sage	9	45
Sambucus mexicana	Elderberry	9	15	protect when young
Satureja chandleri	Potmint	9	120
Satureja douglasii	Yerba Buena	9	600
Satureja mimuloides	Red Hummint	9	10
Saxifraga californica	Calif. Saxifrage	9
Scrophularia atrata	Bee Plant	6?	60
Sedum spathulifolium	Creeping Stonecrop	7	600+
Sequoia sempervirens	Coast Redwood	10		Bucks clean antlers
Sequoiadendron giganteum	Giant-Sequoia	10		Bucks clean antlers
Sheperdia argentea	Silver Buffalo Berry	6
Sidalcea oregana	Oregon Checkers	8
Simmondsia chinensis	Jojoba	5
Sisyrinchium bellum	Blue-eyed Grass	8	600
Sisyrinchium californicum	Yellow-eyed Grass	8	600
Solanum umbelliferum	Blue Witch	9
Solanum Wallacii		5
Sphaeralcea ambigua	Apricot/Desert Mallow	5	30
Sphaeralcea Munroana		5
Spiraea douglasii		9	1
Stachys bullata	Hedge Nettle	9	60
Stanleya pinnata	Princes Plume	5	60
Stipa coronata	Fountain Grass,	9	1
Stipa speciosa	Neddle Grass	9	2
Styrax officinalis var. californica	Snowdrop Bush	6	2
Symphoricarpus albus	Snowberry	8	30
Tsuga Mertensiana	Mountain Hemlock	7		protect when young
Trichostema lanatum	Woolly Blue Curls	7	5	protect when young
Umbellularia californica	California Bay	9	1.5	protect when young
Viguiera deltoidea Parishii	Desert Sunflower	6
Viola pedunculata	Johnny-Jump-up	7
Viola quercetorum	Oak Woodland Voilet	7
Washingtonia filifera	Fan Palm	8		young plants bothered
Xylococcus bicolor	Mission Manzanita	5	7
Yucca brevifolia	Joshua Tree	8	20	Deer will roll out of ground in bad years
Yucca schidigera	Spanish Dagger	8	60	Deer will roll out of ground in bad years
Yucca Whipplei	Our Lord's Candle	8		Deer will roll out of ground in bad years
Zauschneria californica mexicana	California fuchsia	7	60	mow to ground each winter
Zauschneria cana	Narrow Leaf Ca. fuchsia	7	60	mow to ground each winter

*Educated guess.

The safest deer plants are native to your area, try to plant plants that blend into your area. Use the plant community pages or the plant picker program to determine the right plants

The deer numbers:

1-2: They will eat this plant in one night, many times not even leaving the roots. If you have ever even seen a deer in the area it is best not to plant these plants.

3-4: If you have these plants in your garden you don't have deer, they will leave a leafless, stemless stock that usually will recover poorly. Roses and fruit trees fit into this bracket.

5-6: In light deer populations they will not bother, in moderate populations the plants will be eaten like numbers 3-4, in heavy populations they will remove, stems and all.

7: These plants will tolerate moderate deer populations, heavy populations may be disfigured or damaged. Many native shrubs fit into this category. If under some drought stress (as they should be) deer will prefer your neighbors plants. Some non-natives like rock roses and sun roses are in at this number also. If you have rock roses and they are not being eaten then #7's should be ok.

8-9: These plants are safe in 99% of California and they generally recover in the worst of areas.( Look at note in 10 about new plantings.) Many of the 8-10's are safe for years and a drought will bring the deer population to a higher threshold. Then your 8-9's will be eaten but your neighbors 3-5's will disappear.

10: Close to perfect, sometimes a stupid deer doesn't know better. We have trouble with these when they are planted because the root system will not hold the plant into the ground when the deer check them out. They pull them out. That is why we recommend a cage for the first year (read on). They still will eat the new growth (2-3") on bad years.

Use plants in the categories to tell what number area you live in.

Roses 3, Ceanothus 'Carmel Creeper' 2 ,Fruit trees 3, Indian Hawthorne 6, Oleander 8,Buckeye 8,Rosemary 10(but not for a fire area),Lavender 8, Garden Sage 8,most herbs 8,Ivy 7,Tomatoes 2,corn 8(raccoons eat these),Photina 5, Bottle brush 6,Hibiscus 6

If you see deer in numbers (5-20) during the day you are a 9. If they climb hawthorns, eat the bark off trees and bushes you are in #10 territory. If you are moving into a new area and no one has landscaping, ask WHY? We recommend you make cages of chicken wire or orchard wire 4' tall, make a hoop 2' across and wire staple to an 2"X 2" treated post driven into the ground 18". Both the top and bottom can be open,( if they are real bad cover the top). Leave this on the new plantings for the first year. The hoop is easy to make and can be moved to next year's plants. Most of the damage done on 9 & 10s are when newly planted and not hardened off. You need to stress your plants some during the summer so they can develop the necessary terpenes and alkaloides for protection. Deer love nice soft plants. Keeping in mind the fire threat we recommend watering once/week to once/month (Once/week in Barstow, exposed sites in the San Joaquin valley and Paso Robles. In the coastal areas watch the plants. We have had to cut back the watering to 1/month to achieve the a stress level high enough for deer protection.

Fire:

A wooden house would have a fire number of 5. Your overall landscape should average 10 or greater on flat ground next to house, 100+ if it's a slope.. Beyond 100 feet on flat ground, no biggy. Beyond 300 feet on slope probably ok. So zone your areas with irrigation and fire safety. Crudely figure using a table like the ones below.. (Designers and Architects you should design using sq. feet or meters/mature plant versus total area anyway.) The overlay of the trees count twice, count tree sq. meters and the stuff under them sq. meters. A small tree(Buckeye) with 9 sq. meters and a fire number of 8, with Yerba Buena under it., you are effectively averaging the numbers, while doubling the mass of vegetation.

Here are some examples.

Plant, one native tree with groundcover under it.	sq. meters or sq. yards	fire #	Quotient
Buckeye	9	8	1.13
Yerba Buena	9	600	.015
Total square ground covered	18		1.145
	total sq.		total q
	total-sq/quotient=15.7

Plant, a non-native tree with non-native under it.	sq. meters or sq. yards	fire #	Quotient
Elm, Chinese(overhangs house)	100	1.5	67
Juniper, Pfitzer	64	15	4
Total square ground covered	100		71
	total sq.		total q
	total-sq/quotient=1.4

A native slope planting. Plants are not low enough. Need more 600s.	sq. meters or sq. yards	fire #	Quotient
Ceanothus Yankee Point	9	60	.15
Arctostaphylos 'Sunset'	9	60	.15
Arctostaphylos edmundsii 'Carmel Sur'	9	600	.015
	27		.315
	total sq.		total q
	total-sq/quotient=85

A native desert planting.	sq. meters or sq. yards	fire #	Quotient
Desert Willow	25	10	2.5
Desert mallow	9	30	.3
Salvia clevelandii	9	15	.6
	43		8.8
	total sq.		total q
	total-sq/quotient=4.8

A planting under a young Jeffery Pine.	sq. meters or sq. yards	fire #	Quotient
Jeffery Pine	16	1	16
Fallugia paradoxa	1	15	.07
Keckellia ternata	1	15	.07
Ribes aureum	1	25	.04
	19		16.18
	total sq.		total q
	total-sq/quotient=1.17