[Scpg] Best permaculture design ideas for fire country?

[LBUZZELL at aol.com]

Hoping that  all who receive this are safe from the fires ravaging the South 
Coast and  So Cal. 
Today Gov.  Schwartzenegger admitted that because of global climate 
disruption, Central and  Southern California now have an extended fire season  
stretching from late February through December, instead of late June through mid  
October as it used to be. And Jan and Feb are Flood season (if we're  lucky!) 
What are some  of the most helpful design and planting ideas permaculture can 
offer our  community in this changed situation, both at the individual 
backyard level and  also for our whole town? Certainly we need to implement all the 
permaculture  water harvesting strategies to lock moisture into our 
landscapes, but what  else?  The mainstream media seems to be advocating a fairly 
denuded,  barren, "scorched earth" landscape with little understory as the safest  
approach -- what alternatives does permaculture have to offer? 
I'm going to  compile a list of "best practices" and would love your input, 
tips and  ideas! 
Some examples  of possible kinds of ideas to include... the notion of 
greenbelts of  heavily-watered avos and citrus protecting homes from wilder,  
burn-prone outlying areas... the use of various water-holding plants like  sedum as 
groundcover in backyard food forests.   
Also it would  be good to address the issue of plants to avoid and plants to  
include. 
One thing I'm  very interested in is the bad rap the media and fire officials 
are giving  eucalyptus trees.  Australian permaculture teacher Geoff Lawton 
on his  recent visit urged us not to completely avoid all eucs as fire hazards, 
but to  learn about cultivars that can be useful.  Does anyone know which 
eucs are  a good thing to include in local landscapes, and which to avoid or even 
cut  down?   
Would love to  hear your thoughts... 
Linda 

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