Riverside, CA Landscaping Rules: Native Plants (2026)
Key Facts
- Ordinance
- Water Efficient Landscape Ordinance, RMC §19.570
- Native plants status
- Listed first among approved water-efficiency methods
- Applicability threshold
- New ≥500 sq ft / rehab ≥2,500 sq ft
- Water budget factor (ETAF)
- 0.55 residential / 0.45 nonresidential
- Invasive species
- Strongly discouraged (Cal-IPC list)
Summary
Riverside doesn't mandate native landscaping citywide, but its Water Efficient Landscape Ordinance (RMC §19.570.030) lists protecting native vegetation and choosing local native plants first among the approved methods for meeting a project's water budget, and separately discourages invasive species on covered projects.
1.Plant material.a.Any plant may be selected for the landscape providing the Estimated Total Water Use in the landscape area does not exceed the Maximum Applied Water Allowance. Methods to achieve water efficiency shall include one or more of the following:i.Protection and preservation of native species and natural vegetation;ii.Selection of water-conserving plant, tree and turf species, especially local native plants;iii.Selection of plants based on local climate suitability, disease and pest resistance...g.The use of invasive plant species, such as those listed by the California Invasive Plant Council, is strongly discouraged.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 33).
Full Breakdown
030(D)(1)(a), any plant may be used as long as the landscape's Estimated Total Water Use stays within its Maximum Applied Water Allowance, and the section lists the methods to get there: protecting and preserving native species and natural vegetation is listed first, followed by selecting water-conserving plant, tree and turf species 'especially local native plants,' then choosing plants for local climate suitability, disease and pest resistance. 020). The same design-criteria section discourages invasive plants: use of species listed by the California Invasive Plant Council is 'strongly discouraged,' and projects in the Sycamore Canyon, Canyon Springs, Mission Grove, and Canyon Crest neighborhoods must consult Table 6-2 of the Multiple Species Habitat Conservation Plan to avoid species that threaten the MSHCP conservation area.
110(B)(1). None of this amounts to a native-plant mandate, turf and non-native water-conserving species remain allowed on covered projects as long as the overall water budget calculation is met, but native selection is written into the code as the City's preferred first method.
Violations & Fines
A landscape plan submitted for a covered project doesn't need to use native plants, but it must still meet the Maximum Applied Water Allowance calculation reviewed by the Community & Economic Development Director; the City withholds the certificate of occupancy or final approval until the landscape and irrigation plans are approved and installed as approved (§19.570.030). There's no separate penalty tied to skipping native plants specifically, since native selection is an optional method, not a standalone requirement.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Riverside require me to plant native species?
Which Riverside neighborhoods have extra invasive-plant scrutiny?
Does the native-plant rule apply to my existing yard?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Riverside
California rules heatmap·Compare Riverside to another location·View the California landscaping rules overview
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Native Plants in Nearby Cities
How other cities in Riverside County handle native plants.