Palm Springs, CA Landscaping Rules: Grass Height Limits (2026)

Palm Springs does not set a numeric grass-height limit the way many suburban cities do. Instead, the Municipal Code treats excessive vegetation, dry brush, and weeds as a public nuisance subject to abatement under Chapter 11.72 and the weed-abatement provisions administered each spring before fire season. Code Compliance officers evaluate properties on whether vegetation is maintained, whether it creates a fire hazard in the wildland-urban interface areas near the mountains, and whether it harbors vermin. Because of California's AB 1572 and the city's desert-appropriate landscaping push under PSMC Chapter 8.70 (Water Efficient Landscape Ordinance), most new construction and major renovations already limit turf to functional recreation areas; remaining lawns at older single-family homes are expected to be mowed and edged. If vegetation is cited, the city posts a notice, allows time to correct, and can abate and lien the cost to the property. Short-term rental operators face extra scrutiny because unmaintained yards generate neighbor complaints, and STR certificates can be suspended for repeated property-maintenance violations.