9 county-level rules, plus city-specific rules for 2 cities in Jefferson County, Colorado.
Verified from official government sources
Unincorporated Jefferson County has no countywide grass-height number the way cities do. In the foothills WUI, tall dry grass is governed instead by wildfire defensible-space standards; on the plains your city or fire district may set a height. Noxious weeds must still be managed under state law.
In the foothills WUI, the Jefferson County Zoning Resolution (Sec. 39) defensible-space standards require trees near your home to be trimmed: crowns kept 5 feet from structures and 10 feet from chimneys, and branches pruned 6-10 feet up. Outside the WUI, routine tree pruning needs no county permit.
Unincorporated Jeffco has no general permit to remove a tree on your own property. In the Wildland-Urban Interface, wildfire mitigation (thinning and removing trees) is encouraged and tied to a Defensible Space Permit for building projects. Colorado State Forest Service thinning guidance applies.
Every landowner in unincorporated Jefferson County has a legal duty to manage noxious weeds. State law (CRS 35-5.5-104): 'It is the duty of all persons to use integrated methods to manage noxious weeds if the same are likely to be materially damaging to the land of neighboring landowners.'
CRS 35-5.5-104
It is the duty of all persons to use integrated methods to manage noxious weeds if the same are likely to be materially damaging to the land of neighboring landowners.
Jefferson County runs no outdoor-watering ordinance; restrictions come from your water utility. Much of metro Jeffco is served by Denver Water, which in 2026 declared a Stage 1 drought: watering limited to two set days weekly, never between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m.
Colorado law lets residents of single-family homes and buildings of four or fewer units collect rooftop rainwater in up to two rain barrels totaling 110 gallons, for outdoor use on the same property. No permit is needed. Jefferson County does not add its own rain-barrel rule.
Colorado protects water-wise landscaping. Under CRS 38-33.3-106.5, an HOA may not prohibit xeriscape or drought-tolerant vegetative landscapes on property a unit owner is responsible for. Jefferson County encourages native-plant gardening and imposes no rule against it.
CRS 38-33.3-106.5(1)(i)(I)
An association may not prohibit the use of xeriscape or drought-tolerant vegetative landscapes to provide ground covering to property for which a unit owner is responsible, including a limited common element or property owned by the unit owner.
Jefferson County has no general county ban on residential artificial turf; check your HOA and city. Colorado's HB22-1151 turf-replacement program funds swapping irrigated bluegrass for 'water-wise landscaping' - defined as practices emphasizing plants with lower water needs. HOAs cannot ban drought-tolerant landscaping.
Colorado HB22-1151 (Turf Replacement Program, 2022)
"Water-wise landscaping" means a water- and plant-management practice that emphasizes using plants with lower water needs.
Jefferson County has no ordinance banning backyard compost piles, and residential composting is allowed. There is no county-run curbside compost mandate for unincorporated areas. Keep piles managed so they don't create odor, rodents, or a nuisance, and away from WUI fuel concerns.
2 cities in Jefferson County have their own landscaping rules rules. Each link goes to that city's dedicated page with code citations.
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