Monroe County, FL Invasive Plant Rules: Prohibited Species (2026)

Section 114-102(h) of the Land Development Code flatly prohibits planting invasive exotic plant species, as defined in Section 101-1, anywhere in unincorporated Monroe County. ), Brazilian pepper (Schinus terebinthifolius), sapodilla (Manilkara zapota), latherleaf (Colubrina asiatica), lead tree (Leucaena leucocephala), seaside mahoe (Thespesia populnea), bowstring hemp (Sansevieria hyacinthoides), beach naupaka (Scaevola taccada), and guinea grass (Panicum maximum), and the word 'including' makes clear the list is not exhaustive; the county biologist can flag other species under the Section 101-1 definition. The same section requires all plant material used to satisfy landscaping requirements to be Florida No.

1 grade or better under state Department of Agriculture nursery standards, free of disease, invasive pests and invasive fungi, and either drawn from the native planting list in Section 114-105 or certified native by the county biologist; Section 114-102(f) separately requires 100 percent of the plant material satisfying landscaping requirements to be native species. Hammock species face an added siting rule: they cannot be planted within 500 feet of native pineland communities under Section 114-102(i). Because tree removal in the Keys otherwise requires a development permit under Section 114-103, the code makes one exception tied directly to this ban: removing ten or fewer stems of an invasive exotic species listed in Section 114-102(h) from a residential developed lot needs no permit at all.