Bowling Green, KY Landscaping Rules: Weed Ordinances (2026)

Sec. 27-4.07 rewrites Section 302.4 of the adopted International Property Maintenance Code to set a single numeric threshold for Bowling Green: weeds or other plant growth, including grass, cannot exceed ten inches in height on any property in the City. The rule exempts land, or portions of land, actually used and properly maintained for agriculture. Everything else counts, except maintained crops, trees, bushes, flowers or other deliberately planted ornamental plants; anything over the ten-inch line is declared a nuisance outright, with no additional finding required.

The property owner carries that responsibility not just for the lot itself but for any easement and the right-of-way strip between the property line and the curb or street, so an overgrown verge is the owner's problem even though the City technically owns that ground. Because weed and grass nuisances are treated as urgent, Sec. 27-6.01 lets the City skip the usual correction period: cases involving weeds and grass nuisances, along with closing vacant structures and emergency or imminent-danger situations under the International Property Maintenance Code, may be abated immediately once a citation issues, rather than giving the owner the standard window to cut the growth first. Enforcement runs through the same Citation Officer process used for the rest of Chapter 27's nuisance and property-maintenance provisions.