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Scarlet gilia is highly flammable and does not belong near structures, despite one conflicting approval.
Idaho Firewise gave this perennial a fire-resistance score of 3 out of 10 in a southern Idaho field trial. On that scale, scores from 0 through 3 fall in the avoid range, while only scores from 8 through 10 are recommended. That finding supports classifying scarlet gilia as highly flammable and keeping it away from structures.
FireSmart BC, however, includes scarlet gilia among its approved fire-resistant plants. Its chart is a compiled, binary system for British Columbia rather than a ten-point field-trial score. Approval there means recommendation, but it does not erase Idaho’s low measured rating. The assessments come from different regions and use different methods, so they answer the landscaping question on unlike terms.
The disagreement leaves little basis for calling scarlet gilia broadly fire resistant. FireSmart BC offers some reassurance, but Idaho’s field result places it squarely in the avoidance band. For siting near a home, the prudent conclusion is to treat the plant as highly flammable and choose distance from structures rather than relying on the approval alone.
Southern Idaho (ID footprint); partial normalized coverage · 2013-11-08
The official database labels itself "For Southern Idaho" and describes Idaho residents at the urban-rangeland interface. FireApproved publishes 419 existing plant owners that cite its scored rows. This bounded Southern Idaho scope is regional context, not statewide coverage or a conclusion that the score transfers unchanged to every Idaho site.
2. Why this plant is relevant here
State distribution
Documented in AZ, CA, CO, ID, MT, NM, NV, OK, OR, TX, UT, WA, WY.
Native range
Introduced / established
USDA hardiness
3. Legal, ecological, and broader status
Legal-list status
Seed-list status
Reported invasive here
Broader regional context
Federal context
How to read this page
The status above is computed from the cited rows below: independent recommendations can support a fire-resistant result, an avoid row can produce keep-away, and disagreement stays visible as conflict. Placement notes preserve each source’s own scheme rather than translating unlike rules into one scale. This is evidence about a plant, not permission to plant it in every part of the defensible space; Zone 0 remains noncombustible.
Where its sources say to plant it
Placement rules below use each source's own distances or named zones, tied to its rating.
They are not interchangeable with the directory's current Zone 0 guidance.
Fire Resistance of Plants Master Database: plantable at 80' from home [Idaho minimum planting distance] (with its avoid rating)
FireSmart BC Plant Program: suitable for HIZ extended zone and beyond [FireSmart BC Home Ignition Zone] (with its recommendation)
The evidence
Grouped by what each source concluded. Primary evidence rated the plant itself
(a lab, field program, or original curation); corroboration compiled or
republished another source's rating and resolves to its root lineage.
