Orlando's Landscaping Rules: The Rules That Matter

Every city handles landscaping rules a little differently. In Orlando, Florida, there are 7 distinct rules that residents and property owners should be aware of. Some are stricter than what neighboring cities enforce, and others are more relaxed. Here is what you need to know.

Tree Trimming

All tree pruning, trimming and removal work in Orlando must follow ANSI Z133.1 arborist safety standards and ANSI A300 tree-care standards. City-required compensatory pruning must be done by removing lateral branches and trimming, never by topping the crown.

Key details: Safety standard: ISA ANSI Z133.1. Tree-care practice standard: TCIA ANSI A300. Topping: Prohibited for required compensatory crown pruning. Administering official: Parks Official (Families, Parks and Recreation). Applies to trees: 10 inches or larger diameter at breast height under encroachment permits.

Pruning, trimming or removal work that fails to follow the ANSI Z133.1 and ANSI A300 standards required by § 65.648, or compensatory crown pruning done by topping instead of removing lateral branches as § 65.641(a) requires, is enforced through the Parks Official's tree-permit conditions and can be grounds for denying or conditioning further tree permits on the site.

Water Restrictions

Orlando's landscape code does not set its own watering calendar: it directs that irrigation days, times, volumes and run times follow whatever the St. Johns River Water Management District requires, and any variance must come from SJRWMD, not the city.

Key details: Watering days/times set by: SJRWMD, not the city. Variance authority: SJRWMD only. Spray head repair window: 5 business days of notice. Sensor repair grace period: 30 days, non-violation. Contractor licensing: Fla. Stat. ch. 489 or local license.

Failing to repair a malfunctioning irrigation system within five business days of written notice, running irrigation on a schedule that conflicts with SJRWMD-set watering days/times without an approved variance, or having unlicensed contractors perform irrigation work are violations enforceable under Chapter 5 of the City Code.

Weed Ordinances

Orlando bans letting weeds, undergrowth, or plant life accumulate excessively or grow untended on a lot when it endangers public health or breeds pests, under Section 14.22. The City can clean it and bill the owner after 15 days' notice.

Key details: Standard: 'Excessive accumulation or untended growth': no fixed height. Applies to: Any lot, tract, or parcel in the City. Notice period: 15 days to remedy or appeal. Cleanup lien interest: 8% per annum.

Failure to cut or clear excessive weed and undergrowth accumulation within the 15-day notice window under Section 14.24 lets the City perform the cleanup under Section 14.25 and certify the cost, plus an administrative charge and any Section 14.27 penalty, to the Director of Finance; unpaid balances become an 8-percent-interest special assessment lien under Section 14.26, enforceable like a tax lien.

Artificial Turf

Orlando allows artificial turf with a Permitting Division permit, but bans it in rights-of-way, within 50 feet of water bodies, in drainage features, and under tree drip lines, and counts it as impervious surface against a lot's impervious-surface ratio.

Key details: Permit required from: Permitting Division. Water body setback: 50 feet. Classified as: Impervious surface for ISR. Prohibited in: Rights-of-way, drainage features. Prohibited material: Indoor/outdoor plastic or nylon carpet.

Installing artificial turf without a Permitting Division permit, within the right-of-way, within 50 feet of a water body, inside a drainage feature or tree drip line, or letting it fall into disrepair with holes, fading or loose edges is a landscaping code violation subject to Code Enforcement Board action under Chapter 5.

Native Plants

Florida actively protects homeowners right to install native and drought-tolerant landscaping. FS 720.3075 prohibits HOAs from banning Florida-friendly landscaping. Florida SB 544 (2023) further strengthened these protections by clarifying that HOAs cannot prohibit replacement of turf grass with low-water alternatives. Orlando encourages native plants through SJRWMD and Orange County Extension programs and incorporates them in city landscaping standards.

Key details: HOA Preemption: FS 720.3075 - cannot ban Florida-friendly landscaping. 2023 Update: SB 544 strengthens turf replacement rights. Definition: FS 373.185 - Nine Florida-Friendly Principles. Local Program: Orlando Green Works native plant resources. Maintenance Required: Must comply with city nuisance codes.

HOA refusing to allow Florida-friendly landscaping: violates FS 720.3075, homeowner can sue for damages and attorney fees. Improperly maintained native landscape: still subject to Orlando weed and nuisance codes (Ch. 43).

If you are coming from a city with tighter rules, you will find Orlando gives residents more flexibility on native plants.

Composting

Orlando's residential landscaping code names composting bins outright: they're an accessory item that must stay out of front and street side yards, just like sheds, coops and storage. No front-yard compost piles or bins are allowed on one- and two-family lots.

Key details: Front/street side yard bins: Prohibited. Rear or interior side yard: Permitted. Size/setback limit: None specified in § 60.223. Enforcing office: Building Official / Zoning Official. Applies to: One- and two-family residential lots.

A composting bin (or any other accessory item) placed in a front or street side yard in violation of § 60.223 is enforced as a City Code violation under § 1.08: a fine up to $500, up to 60 days imprisonment, or both, with each day the violation continues treated as a separate offense. New development and substantial enlargements can also be held up at Certificate of Occupancy issuance until the property complies.

Orlando is more permissive than most cities when it comes to composting. That said, there are still limits.

Tree Removal & Heritage Trees

Orlando requires a tree removal permit from the Parks Official before anyone destroys, injures, or removes a protected tree under City Code § 43.34. A protected tree is any woody plant capable of reaching 15 feet with at least a 6-inch trunk diameter measured 4.5 feet above grade; residential owners can skip the paperwork only with a certified arborist's written hazard finding.

Key details: Governing section: City Code § 43.34. Protected size: 6-inch trunk diameter, 15-foot mature height. Residential exemption: Requires certified arborist hazard letter. Inspection fee: $25/acre residential, $50/acre nonresidential. Permit validity: Void 90 days after issuance.

Violating § 43.34, cutting, damaging, poisoning, or removing a protected tree without a permit, is subject to 'the enforcement procedures and penalties provided by Chapter 5 of this City Code for each offense' (§ 43.34.K), meaning each tree removed can be charged as a separate Code Enforcement Board violation with escalating daily fines rather than a single citation.

The Bottom Line

Compared to many U.S. cities, Orlando gives residents more room on landscaping rules. 2 of the 7 rules here are rated permissive. But permissive does not mean unregulated. There are still requirements, and the city does enforce them when violations are reported.

Keep in mind that Orlando can amend these rules at any council meeting. For the most current version of any rule mentioned here, check the specific ordinance page, where we track updates as they happen.