Orlando, FL Landscaping Rules: Tree Trimming (2026)

1 Industry Safety Standards and Tree Care Industry Association ANSI A300 Industry Task Standards. Those standards apply whenever the Parks Official requires pruning as a condition of a City tree permit. 641(a), when a Tree Encroachment Permit allows construction near a protected tree (10 inches or larger diameter at breast height), the Parks Official can require compensatory pruning of the crown to offset the stress of the encroachment, and the code specifies how: the crown must be pruned by removing lateral branches and trimming, rather than by topping.

646 gives the Parks Official the same authority for trees retained near development sites, allowing conditions such as pruning proportional to root loss, tree wells, drainage and aeration techniques, and specific soil or fill materials to help a retained tree recover from grade changes; pruning under that section must again be proportionate to the loss of roots and directed by the Parks Official. These pruning rules sit within Chapter 65's tree-permit framework (Part 6F), which is administered by the Parks Official and enforced alongside the City's tree removal and tree encroachment permit programs, so a contractor doing City-conditioned pruning work, not just removal, must use ISA/TCIA-certified practices rather than ordinary landscaping crews using unsupervised topping or flush cuts.