Johns Creek, GA Landscaping Rules: Native Plants (2026)

Johns Creek does not impose a native-plant requirement on private residential landscaping; homeowners are free to plant non-native ornamentals and grass, subject only to the general property maintenance and weed standards. Where the city does express a preference, it is in its tree and public-landscaping guidelines: the Tree Preservation Administrative Guidelines note a list of preferred species for public property and state that "native trees, shrubbery, and plants are preferred." Many of the small native flowering trees the ordinance protects as specimen trees — dogwood, redbud, and sourwood — are native species, and protected large hardwoods such as oak, hickory, yellow poplar, beech, and sweetgum are also native. For new development, the city's tree density (Density Factor for the Site) system governs how many trees must be retained or replanted, and replacement plantings draw on the city's preferred-species framework administered by the City Arborist. Practically, this means a Johns Creek resident faces no penalty for choosing non-native landscaping, but is encouraged to retain native specimen trees and may benefit from planting native species when satisfying replacement requirements after removing a protected tree. Residents interested in native landscaping for water conservation can also pair it with the state's drip-irrigation and food-garden exemptions, which allow flexible watering.