Fire Season Tree Trimming Guide for LA County Homeowners

The Palisades and Eaton fires of January 2025 made one thing clear to every homeowner in Los Angeles County: trees near a house can carry fire to it. Embers driven by Santa Ana winds land in dead palm skirts, pine needles on the roof and dry eucalyptus bark. Brush clearance rules exist to break that chain. This guide covers what the rules mean for your trees and how to get ahead of them with tree trimming.

Who Enforces Brush Clearance

If you live in the City of Los Angeles, brush clearance is enforced by the Los Angeles Fire Department in designated Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zones. Most of the rest of the county — including many contract cities and unincorporated areas — falls under the Los Angeles County Fire Department’s Brush Clearance Unit, which sends annual defensible space notices and inspects through the dry months. Some cities, like Glendale, Pasadena and Burbank, have their own fire departments and inspection programs.

Defensible Space Zones

California’s defensible space model divides the area around a home into zones:

• Zone 0 (0–5 feet): the ember-resistant zone right next to the house. State regulations for this zone have been in development; in practice, no dead vegetation, combustible mulch or branches touching the structure.
• Zone 1 (5–30 feet): lean, clean and green. Remove dead plants and limbs, space trees and keep branches away from other trees and structures.
• Zone 2 (30–100 feet or to the property line): reduced fuel. Thin vegetation, remove ladder fuels and dead material.

What the Rules Mean for Trees

Typical tree-related requirements in LA County brush clearance areas include:

• Keeping branches cut back from the roof, and away from chimney and stovepipe outlets
• Removing dead wood, dead fronds and debris from trees and from the roof and gutters
• Raising tree canopies off the ground to remove ladder fuels — lower limbs are commonly trimmed up about 6 feet, or a third of the tree’s height on smaller trees
• Thinning dense trees so crowns are not continuous with each other or with the house
• Removing dead trees entirely

Your notice or your fire department’s website lists the exact requirements for your address. When in doubt, call them.

Which Trees to Prioritize

Palms: dead skirts are highly flammable. Remove them first. See when to trim palm trees in Los Angeles.

Pines: resinous, and they drop needles on roofs and in gutters. Remove deadwood and raise lower limbs.

Eucalyptus: shed bark and leaf litter build up fast and burn hot. Clean dead limbs and bark, and consider removal of eucalyptus overhanging the home.

Dead trees of any species: these are the top priority for tree removal.

When to Schedule

LA County Fire’s notices typically go out in late winter and spring, with inspections running into summer. Tree crews book up fast in spring. Schedule your brush-season trimming in late winter or early spring, and keep in mind that nesting season (roughly February through August) can delay work on trees with active nests. Fall trimming ahead of peak Santa Ana season is also smart for anyone in a hillside or canyon neighborhood.

Protected Trees Still Need Permits

Brush clearance does not override protected-tree rules. Native oaks, sycamores, bays and walnuts can generally be pruned for clearance, but removal or heavy cutting still needs a permit. See tree removal permits in Los Angeles County explained.

After the Trim

Once the trees are done, grind old stumps that trap debris with stump grinding, clear the gutters, and keep up the work each year. We handle fire-season trimming in hillside communities like Malibu, Calabasas, La Canada Flintridge, Glendora, Santa Clarita and Rancho Palos Verdes. Call 877-552-8556 to get on the schedule, or visit the [home page](/) to see everything we do.