Tree Protection in Springfield, MO (2026)
2 verified tree protection rules for Springfield, Missouri, sourced directly from the municipal code and official government pages.
Verified from official government sources
Protected Tree Species
Springfield, Missouri's zoning code protects individual 'exceptional quality' trees, chosen for size, canopy, trunk, rareness, age or species, by crediting them toward landscaping requirements and letting the city waive setback and bufferyard rules to save them.
Springfield Exceptional Quality Tree Protection Rule
Some RestrictionsSpringfield Land Development Code § 36-482(7)(g)1, (7)(i)
Trees of exceptional quality due to size, large canopy cover, trunk diameter, rareness, age or species located anywhere on the site may, at the discretion of the director, be credited as four trees in computing the minimum requirements in bufferyards and perimeter landscaping areas. ... The director may waive rules regarding setbacks and bufferyards to preserve trees of exceptional quality due ...
Parkway Planting
Springfield's code sets minimum planting distances for street trees and restricts what can go in a narrow parkway strip, requiring a free permit from the director of public works before anyone plants.
Springfield, MO Parkway Tree Planting Rules
Some RestrictionsSpringfield City Code § 114-60 (Ch. 114, Art. II, Div. 2)
No person shall plant or cause to be planted any street tree in any parkway, which parkway has a width of less than six feet, unless the director of public works shall find that the proposed tree to be planted will at its maturity, attain a height no greater than 20 feet and a trunk diameter no greater than eight inches and that the rooting system of the type of tree proposed is of a deep-rooti...
Looking for Greene County county-wide rules?
County ordinances apply to unincorporated areas and may supplement Springfield city rules.
Tree Protection in Greene County →