St. Petersburg, FL Landscaping Rules: Tree Trimming (2026)

St. 1, puts the duty to keep street-side branches clear on the owner of record and occupant of the property (subsection A). Subsection F sets the clearance numbers: branches over a public sidewalk must provide a minimum of 8 feet of vertical clearance, and branches over a street or alley must clear at least 14 feet; sod and ground cover next to the pavement may creep onto it by no more than 6 inches, but tree and shrub branches may not encroach onto the sidewalk or street surface at all.

Trimming itself is regulated too, subsection C bars topping, poisoning or otherwise injuring a protected tree, forbids pruning into unnatural shapes such as circles, ovals or squares, and caps annual pruning at one-quarter of the canopy unless the tree is dead. Subsection G separately makes it unlawful for an owner or occupant to let a diseased or dead tree or limb remain standing over a right-of-way or a neighbor's property if it is in danger of falling. 4 notice-of-violation process: POD mails and posts a notice, the owner has 10 days to appeal (5 days for a repeat violation within the prior year), and if the condition is not corrected the City can enter the property to trim the branches and bill the cost, plus administrative fees, as a special assessment lien bearing 8% to 12% annual interest.