South Fulton, GA Invasive Plant Rules: Prohibited Species (2026)

Section 3-6003 of the Property Maintenance Ordinance defines 'weeds' broadly to reach invasive growth, not just tall grass: kudzu, poison ivy, jimsonweed, burdock, ragweed, thistle, cocklebur, dandelion, 'plants of obnoxious odors,' and 'any invasive exotic plant species' all count, while cultivated flowers, fruit, vegetables and gardens are carved out. That definition feeds two separate enforcement provisions. Under § 3-6005, premises and exterior property, plus the right-of-way strip an owner fronts, must stay free of these weeds and uncultivated vegetation above six inches; undeveloped land and any portion of a developed lot deliberately kept in a natural state is exempt from the six-inch rule but still must keep growth under ten inches within 20 feet of the property's road frontage and side/rear lines where it borders developed neighbors, so invasive species like kudzu can't spread across a boundary even from a 'natural' section of a lot.

Stream and zoning buffers are excepted from even that reduced standard, though growth inside a buffer still can't encroach onto other properties. Separately, § 3-3001(a) singles out kudzu, briars, honeysuckle and similar undergrowth by name as something every owner has an affirmative duty to cut and remove once it becomes a nuisance to neighboring residents or businesses, backed by the city's cut-and-lien enforcement process. The definition's 'invasive exotic plant species' language is not tied to a state noxious-weed list in this code; it functions as a catch-all inside the general weeds/undergrowth removal duty rather than a standalone prohibited-species registry.