Putnam County, FL Invasive Plant Rules: Prohibited Species (2026)
Key Facts
- Prohibited species count
- 5 (Table 7.5)
- Species
- mimosa, paper mulberry, camphor, chinaberry, Chinese tallow
- Governing section
- § 45-511(c)(4)
- List location
- Table 7.5, Appendix VII
- Also barred
- species prohibited by state/federal law
Summary
Putnam County's Land Development Code bars five invasive species from required landscaping. Sec. 45-511(c)(4) prohibits plants the county calls obnoxious, invasive and environmentally detrimental, and Table 7.5 in Appendix VII names them: mimosa, paper mulberry, camphor, chinaberry and Chinese tallow, on top of any species already banned by state or federal law.
(4)Prohibited plant species means certain plant species are so obnoxious, invasive and detrimental to the environment so that they are considered contrary to the intent of this section and expressly prohibited. The list of prohibited plant species is provided in Table 7.5, found [in] appendix VII. The list found in Table 7.5 is in addition to any plant species prohibited by state of federal law. ... Table 7.5—Prohibited Plantings
Botanical Name Common Name Albizia julibrissin Mimosa Broussonetia papyrifera Paper Mulberry Cinnamomum camphora Camphor Melia azedarach Chinaberry Sapium sebiferum Chinese Tallow
Full Breakdown
Sec. 45-511(c)(4) of the Land Development Code defines prohibited plant species as those the county considers so obnoxious, invasive and detrimental to the environment that they are expressly barred from any landscaping installed to satisfy the Code. Table 7.5, printed in Appendix VII, is the actual list: Albizia julibrissin (mimosa), Broussonetia papyrifera (paper mulberry), Cinnamomum camphora (camphor), Melia azedarach (chinaberry) and Sapium sebiferum (Chinese tallow). The section is explicit that this five-species list sits on top of, not in place of, any plant already prohibited by state or federal law, so a developer has to clear both lists before finalizing a landscape plan.
The ban runs through every landscaping requirement in the article, from the vehicle-use-area planting in Sec. 45-512 to the buffer and screening standards in Sec. 45-513 and the general installation standards in Sec. 45-515, since all of them draw their species choices from the same approved-and-prohibited framework set up in Sec. 45-511. A landscape plan that specifies one of the five prohibited species cannot be approved, and an installed prohibited tree found during an inspection or maintenance review is treated the same as any other landscaping violation under the article.
Violations & Fines
Installing one of the five species from Table 7.5 in required landscaping violates article VII, division 3, and is enforced the same way as any other landscaping defect: through code enforcement under article XII before the special magistrate. Sec. 45-518 lets the county order removal of the prohibited plant and its replacement with an approved tree of comparable caliper, on top of whatever fine the magistrate assesses for the underlying violation.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which plants can't be used in Putnam County landscaping?
Does the county's five-species list cover every invasive plant?
What happens if a prohibited species ends up in an approved landscape plan?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Putnam County
Florida rules heatmap·Compare Putnam County to another location·View the Florida invasive plant rules overview
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