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

Sumter County's Land Development Code addresses invasive plants under the tree protection article that also governs significant-tree retention. Section 13-800(d), 'Undesirable (prohibited) vegetation,' imposes two separate duties on anyone developing or redeveloping land in unincorporated Sumter County, including the Sumter County portion of The Villages. First, subsection (d)(1) requires that all undesirable exotic vegetation be removed by the developer or property owner at the time of clearing, construction, or redevelopment. The only carve-out is for wetlands or natural water bodies regulated by the Southwest Florida Water Management District or another agency, where removal needs that agency's approval for invasive exotic plant removal before it can proceed.

Second, and broader, subsection (d)(2) forbids deliberately introducing any plant species identified as non-native or invasive by the University of Florida IFAS Assessment of Non-native Plants in Florida's Natural Areas into the county on any properties, a countywide planting ban that is not limited to active development sites. Development Services reviews landscape and site plans against these standards during permitting, cross-checking proposed plant lists against the current IFAS assessment categories before approving a landscape plan. Because the rule sits inside the tree-protection article, it is enforced alongside the county's significant-tree retention standards for the same site plan review.

The section does not create its own named list of banned species; it incorporates the IFAS assessment by reference, so what counts as prohibited tracks whatever UF IFAS currently classifies.