Living turf has long been recognised by fire agencies as a desirable component of landscaping to prevent or reduce damage from bushfire. Turf has the further benefit of providing a defendable space from which firefighters can seek to protect properties. In the Australian Standard 3959 Construction of buildings in bushfire-prone areas, managed turf is not considered a bushfire hazard. Land areas across which the principal vegetation cover is live turf, such as sports fields, maintained lawns, golf courses and other managed grasslands are termed low threat vegetation. The Victorian CFA’s Landscaping for Bushfire guide also describes the benefits of turf and its maintenance requirements to reduce bushfire risk. All natural turf varieties actively grow in summer which means it is able to be maintained in a green, healthy state over the peak bushfire season in Australia. This makes turf is an ideal groundcover for use in Asset Protection Zones.
