Lower Merion, PA Landscaping Rules: Tree Removal & Heritage Trees (2026)
Tree removal permit rules in Lower Merion, PA, sometimes called heritage tree, protected tree, or street tree ordinances, list which trees require a permit before you can cut them down.
Key Facts
- Prohibited acts
- Cutting, injuring, spraying shade trees
- Disease removal notice
- 4 weeks' written notice
- Unpaid removal cost
- Becomes a lien on property
- Emergency abatement
- No notice needed (§128-8)
- Exception
- Immediate necessity to protect life/property
- Penalty
- Fine per offense, daily separate
Summary
Lower Merion Township bans cutting, injuring or removing any Township shade tree without authorization under § 128-10, and lets the Shade Tree Commission order a private owner to remove diseased trees threatening street trees on four weeks' written notice under § 128-7, with unpaid work becoming a lien on the property.
§ 128-7. Maintenance and removal of trees on private property. A. Notwithstanding any other provisions of this chapter, the Commission shall, upon four weeks' prior written notice to the owner of the property, require the owner to cut and remove any trees, or parts thereof, on their properties (but not in the Township right-of-way) afflicted with any disease which threatens to injure or destroy Township shade trees. ... ... § 128-10. Acts injurious to shade trees prohibited. Except in case of immediate necessity for protection of life or property, it shall be a violation of this chapter for any person to do any of the following acts: A. Cut, break, climb with spurs, injure in any manner or remove a shade tree. B. Cut down a shade tree or interfere in any manner with the roots of a shade tree.
Full Breakdown
Section 128-10 lists prohibited acts against any shade tree, including cutting, breaking, climbing with spurs, cutting down a tree or interfering with its roots, spraying chemicals or insecticides, attaching rope, wire, cable, signs or posters, and pouring materials that could injure the tree; the only exception is immediate necessity to protect life or property. Section 128-7A lets the Commission require a private owner, on four weeks' prior written notice, to cut and remove diseased trees on their own property (outside the right-of-way) that threaten Township shade trees, and Subsection C requires that notice be both mailed to the owner's last known address and posted at the main entrance of the habitable structure.
If the owner does not comply, § 128-7B authorizes the Township to do the work itself and recover the cost as a lien on the property, collectible through legal action or a municipal lien filing. Section 128-8 goes further, letting the Township act without any prior notice at all to abate a clear, present and immediate threat from a tree, then assess the abatement cost against whoever caused the danger.
Violations & Fines
Anyone who cuts, injures or removes a shade tree without Commission approval, or ignores a four-week removal notice under § 128-7, faces the Chapter 128 penalty in § 128-13: a fine for each offense with every additional day of violation counted separately. If a property owner does not comply with a removal notice, the Township can perform the work itself and file a lien against the property under § 128-7B to recover its cost.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I cut down a tree in the Township right-of-way myself?
What if the Township says my own tree threatens a street tree with disease?
What happens if I ignore that removal notice?
Can the Township act without any notice at all?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Lower Merion
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