Cherokee County, GA Landscaping Rules: Weed Ordinances (2026)

Sec. 14-66, part of Division 2 Property Maintenance Standards in Chapter 14, sets a hard numeric limit: no grass, underbrush, or weeds may be permitted or allowed to grow to a height greater than 12 inches above ground level. The section carves out four exceptions: agriculturally zoned property, property actually used for agricultural purposes, county-designated green space on residentially zoned property, and areas of residentially zoned property that exist in their natural, undisturbed state. The article's definitions section, Sec. 14-35, defines "weeds" to include kudzu, poison ivy, jimsonweed, burdock, ragweed, thistle, cocklebur, dandelion, and other plants of obnoxious odors or unsightly growth, but expressly excludes cultivated flowers, fruits, vegetables, and gardens from the definition.

The rule applies to every property in the unincorporated county, occupied or vacant, including unimproved lots, under the article's scope provision at Sec. 14-33. 00 (Sec. 14-34). Each day the grass, underbrush, or weeds remain above 12 inches after notice is treated as a separate offense, and the county may also pursue an injunction or other civil abatement remedy independent of the citation.