Invasive Plant Rules in Mesa, AZ (2026)
2 verified invasive plant rules for Mesa, Arizona, sourced directly from the municipal code and official government pages.
Verified from official government sources
Prohibited Species
Inside Mesa's Desert Uplands Area, required landscaping must be selected from the Preferred and Acceptable plant lists in Table 9-6-6.D.5 of the City Code, and a companion Prohibited Plant List bars species including citrus, oleander, olive trees, all palms, all pines, junipers, and salt cedar (tamarisk) from being used to meet that requirement.
Mesa Desert Uplands Prohibited Plant List
Some RestrictionsMesa City Code, Title 9, Chapter 6, § 9-6-6(D)(5), Table 9-6-6.D.5
Table 9-6-6.D.5 Desert Uplands Plant List ... PROHIBITED PLANT LIST Cedrus Cedar Chamaecyparis False Cypress Citrus Citrus Cupressus Cypress Encelia Farinosa Brittlebush Encelia Frutescens Green Brittlebush Juniperus Juniper Nerium Oleander Oleanders Olea Europaea Olive Trees Palmae All Palms Pennisetum Setaceum Fountain Grass Pinus All Pines Tamarisk Salt Cedar Thevetia Species Thevetia
Front Yard Gardens
In Mesa's Desert Uplands Area, the desert-character overlay in northeast Mesa, the City doesn't dictate what homeowners plant in their own front and rear yards. Section 9-6-6(I)(5) of the Mesa City Code leaves front and rear private yard and garden plant choices to the homeowner and their HOA, unlike the required native-plant lists that govern common areas.
Mesa Desert Uplands Front Yard Plant Rules
Few RestrictionsMesa City Code, Title 9, Chapter 6, § 9-6-6(I)(5)
5.Front and Rear Private Yards/Gardens. Plant materials for front and rear private yards/gardens are left to the choice of the individual homeowners and their homeowners' association. Homeowners are encouraged to use plants from the Preferred Desert Uplands Plant List.
Looking for Maricopa County county-wide rules?
County ordinances apply to unincorporated areas and may supplement Mesa city rules.
Invasive Plant Rules in Maricopa County →