Zealously planting natives don't help fight bushfire, commission told; Melbourne, Australia

Zealously planting natives don't help fight bushfire, commission told The Australian:
THE Victorian Bushfires Royal Commission has heard fears that bushfire could roar through the heavily populated Dandenong Ranges, east of Melbourne, where the tree canopy in one township is three times as dense as the devastated town of Marysville before Black Saturday. Olinda resident and nurseryman Jeremy Francis said mountain residents had believed they could be protected by the Country Fire Authority, but 'at some point on the night of Black Saturday, the penny dropped right around the mountain that we had been living in something of a fool's paradise'.
Saying there had been 'no recognition whatsoever' about the effect of changed land practices and native-revegetation polices, Mr Francis said planning authorities needed to plant fire-retarding deciduous trees as bushfire buffer zones rather than zealously planting Australian natives.

WSU profs tackle the thorny question: Are natives the answer?

Last week Jeff kicked off a lively discussion about invasive plants. Let me state up front that no one on this blog is promoting invasive plants. But the issues surrounding invasive plants are extremely complex and have profound implications for many groups with whom we work in landscape horticulture and urban and community forestry. It is essential in these discussions that we separate fact from hyperbole. In some quarters, lines have been blurred and people fail to make key distinctions and lump exotic, alien, or non-native species together with invasives. According to the Federal Executive Order on Invasive species 'Invasive species' means an alien species whose introduction does or is likely to cause economic or environmental harm or harm to human health. All invasives are alien but only a small fraction of alien species are invasive (all humans are mammals but not all mammals are humans). Nevertheless, there is a temptation to ‘hedge all bets’ and promote only native species for horticultural planting since native plants, by definition, cannot be invasive. In addition, there is a ‘feel good’ aura that surrounds native plants – if they’re native they must be good – that clouds some of the logic in the argument.

Town initiates Native Tree Canopy program to help private property owners; CHevy Chase, MD

Chevy Chase project to restore native trees:
Six years ago during Hurricane Isabel, Daniel Zwerdling-Rothschild was doing yoga with his wife, Barbara, in their living room when they heard what sounded like an explosion overhead. They leaped off their mats, just before a majestic oak tree on their property came crashing through the ceiling and landing where they had been sitting moments before.
They ended up having to rebuild their house in the town of Chevy Chase and moved into the new structure last June. But a lingering concern remains for the oak tree they lost and several other trees the couple had to cut down in the wake of Isabel. They planted a few smaller trees to try to make up the difference, but their yard still isn't what it used to be.

Milwaukie man saves people, then trees; Portland, OR; 1/28/09

Milwaukie man saves people, then trees Clackamas Review - Portland,OR,USA
For Dan Platter, “Trees are the greatest form of life. They embody life — they don’t move, they don’t talk, they don’t build skyscrapers. Everybody lives better when there are trees around.”
But the Milwaukie man doesn’t just like to look at trees, he nurtures hundreds of native trees in his backyard for people to plant in the area and recently launched a nonprofit dedicated to the cause.