Colonie, NY Landscaping Rules: Weed Ordinances (2026)

Colonie's weed-control framework operates at two levels. Locally, the Property Maintenance article (Chapter 62, Article IV) of the Town Code (https://ecode360.com/15257077) governs untended vegetation. Weeds are defined as 'any untended or uncultivated grasses, bushes, deleterious or unhealthful vegetation or other growing matter in excess of 10 inches in height,' with exceptions for trees, properly tended ornamental shrubbery, flowers or vegetables, pastureland, woodland, and land under cultivation. The Building Department enforces this standard with a notice-and-seven-day-cure procedure, followed by Town-performed abatement and cost assessment to the owner. At the state level, the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation maintains an invasive-species program and prohibited/regulated invasive-plant lists under 6 NYCRR Part 575, with Japanese knotweed, mile-a-minute vine, giant hogweed, and porcelain berry among the listed species; the program is coordinated regionally through the Capital/Mohawk PRISM (Partnership for Regional Invasive Species Management). Pesticide application by anyone other than a property owner on their own residential property requires a NYS DEC commercial-applicator certification under Article 33 of the Environmental Conservation Law (6 NYCRR Parts 325-326). Albany County Soil and Water Conservation District (https://www.albanycountyny.gov/) provides technical assistance for invasive-plant management.