Survivors of Eaton Fire get expert help to save remaining trees, plants in their yards

ALTADENA, Calif. (KABC) -- Six months after the devastating and deadly L.A. fires, survivors of the Eaton Fire have been getting expert help on how to save the remaining trees and plants in their yards.

Along with rebuilding efforts, there's also an effort in the community of Atladena to save as many trees in the area as possible.

"Certain trees have a fire resiliency, and if you identify it correctly and leave it for up to a year to two years, you can make sure that it's going to come back. Our oaks are very resilient. It turns out many of our trees are very fire resilient," said Stephanie Landregan, director of Altadena Green, an organization aiming to preserve as many trees as possible in the burn scar area.

For Landregan, identifying fire-damaged trees to save is one thing -- providing resources to nurture them back to health is another. That's where Amigos de Los Rios comes in.

"We realized they needed water, we haven't had enough rain here and of course, it's a very hot area. So, Amigos de Los Rios came to Altadena Green and wants to partner with us and our arborists so we can assess the trees we can keep them alive during the summer," Landregan said.

The nonprofit Amigo de Los Rios has been on a mission for years to create a natural infrastructure network of green spaces throughout the L.A. Basin. The group is already at work in Altadena.

"They're out here without any funding right now and we're applying for funding both Altadena Green and Amigos because we have to keep these trees alive," Landregan said.

"We as a nonprofit, headquartered for the past 20-plus years in Altadena, are very concerned about the impact of the fire on our urban forest canopy," said Claire Robinson, of Amigo de Los Rios.

"There's life in there, yes there are some dead branches, but there's still life in there," said Altadena resident Kate Sullivan.

Sullivan, one of the residents devastated by the fire, got critical advice from the green thumbs to help save one of her damaged trees on her property.

"With this green group, which is awesome, they've let me know that I need to remove the rocks that I have around the tree They would have been fine if the tree hadn't been burned, but now that it's been burned, pull all of the rocks away and put mulch on it and keep it watered like I have been," Sullivan said.