Lower Merion, PA Landscaping Rules: Weed Ordinances (2026)

Section 59-1 of the Township Code, last amended in 2024, declares several categories of vegetation a nuisance because of the danger they pose to public health, safety or the Township's ecology: plants that encroach onto a roadway or sidewalk and obstruct or endanger pedestrians or drivers; weeds named on the Commonwealth's noxious-weed list, including musk thistle, Canadian thistle, jimson weed and giant hogweed; running bamboo of the genus Bambusa, Phyllostachys or Pseudosasa; a list of invasive plants such as Japanese knotweed, Oriental bittersweet and English ivy; poison oak, poison ivy and poison sumac; and, as a catch-all, any other noxious, toxic or allergenic weed, or any vines, tall grass or other vegetation exceeding 12 inches in height if it is offensive.

Subsection B makes it unlawful for a landowner or occupant to propagate, allow to grow, or maintain any plant the chapter declares a nuisance, though bamboo already growing before May 18, 2016 and kept at least 20 feet from a property line is grandfathered. Under § 59-2 the Township can issue a written notice of violation by mail, hand delivery or posting, giving the owner 30 days to remove the nuisance plant, and an owner has 14 days to appeal to the Building and Planning Committee or a hearing officer on specific listed defenses.

If the owner does not abate within 10 days as required by such notice under § 59-3, the Department of Building and Planning can cut, eradicate and remove the vegetation itself and bill the owner for the cost, which under § 59-4 becomes a lien on the property if unpaid after 60 days, plus a 10% penalty. Section 59-5 sets the underlying fine for failing to abate at not more than $600 per offense, with each day the violation continues after the 10-day period a separate offense.