Tulare County, CA Landscaping Rules: Native Plants (2026)

Tulare County does not require homeowners to plant California natives, and there is no ban on traditional ornamental landscaping. The County's relevant rule is Part VII, Chapter 31 (Water Efficient Landscaping), which the County adopted in lieu of the State Model Water Efficient Landscape Ordinance. Chapter 31 promotes xeriscape and water-efficient concepts so that landscape water use can be significantly reduced without sacrificing the benefits of landscaping, and it requires new and rehabilitated landscapes (via the building-permit landscape documentation package) to use efficient irrigation and water-appropriate plant selection. Because the County operates its own ordinance, the statewide Model Water Efficient Landscape Ordinance (MWELO) does not directly apply in the unincorporated county, but MWELO is the relevant state benchmark: it encourages a variety of plants including natives and climate-appropriate species, caps turfgrass at no more than 25 percent of the landscape area in residential projects, and bars turf on steep slopes. Native and low-water plants are therefore strongly encouraged for water efficiency in Tulare County's hot, water-scarce climate but are a design preference, not a legal mandate, for existing homes. Habitat-level native vegetation (oak woodlands, riparian areas) gets separate, policy-based protection through the General Plan's Environmental Resources Management Element when discretionary development is proposed.