Rutherford County, TN Landscaping Rules: Tree Removal & Heritage Trees (2026)

3, Tree Protection During Construction, requires protective barricades around the critical root zone of every tree identified in an approved tree preservation plan before development activity begins, and those barricades must stay up until development is complete. The barrier or tree fence must be at least 3 feet tall, built of material securely fastened to a wood or metal frame with 2-by-4-inch minimum structural cross-braced members, or another substantial barrier the Director of Building Codes approves. Inside the barricade, the area must stay free of building materials, dirt, construction debris and vehicles, and no substantial disturbance, including soil compaction, trenching, backfilling, grading, or dumping trash, oil or paint, is allowed.

2 requires a certified arborist to review the plan, visit the site to confirm the tree survey, document each tree's health and survivability, and establish its critical root zone, though the Planning Director may waive the arborist requirement if disturbance stays at least 20 feet from the existing canopy drip line and the site's vegetation already screens the adjacent property. 1, only existing healthy trees of 4 inches in caliper or greater qualify for these tree credits, on a sliding scale from 1 credit at 4 to 8 inches up to 4 credits above 16 inches. c.