Marietta, GA Landscaping Rules: Weed Ordinances (2026)
Key Facts
- Maximum grass/weed height
- 12 inches
- Enforcing office
- Development Services Director
- Notice sequence
- 48-hour door hanger, then 5-day certified mail
- First-offense penalty
- up to $500 fine and/or 30 days jail
- 3rd offense in 1 year
- up to $1,000 fine and/or 3 months jail
- IPMC cross-reference
- IPMC § 302.4 redirects to § 7-4-2-110
Summary
Marietta City Code § 7-4-2-110(A)(4) caps grass and weeds at 12 inches on any property in the city, improved or not. Owners get a 48-hour door-hanger notice to cut, then a five-day certified-mail notice before a municipal court summons. A third violation within one year of the first raises the fine from $500 to $1,000 and adds jail exposure.
4.Cut and remove grass and weeds in excess of 12 inches in height. ... C.In the event the owner, agent, or other party in charge of the property does not correct the condition or conditions contained in the written notice set forth in Subsection (B), above, it shall be the duty of the director of development services or a designee thereof to give written notice, by certified mail, return receipt requested, and take reasonable steps to notify and advise the property owner ... to bring the property into compliance within five days. ... M.Enforcement of instances of recurring conditions. ... Recurring instances shall be defined as three or more offenses within a one-year period beginning at the date of the first or initial offense. Any person, who after the third offense within a year of the first or initial offense, continues to violate this article or fails to comply with any of its requirements, shall be subject to a fine not to exceed $1,000.00 and/or imprisoned for not more than three months, or both; and in addition, shall pay all costs and expenses involved in each separate offense.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 56).
Full Breakdown
Section 7-4-2-110(A) requires every owner, tenant, agent or employee to "cut and remove grass and weeds in excess of 12 inches in height," and separately to trim overgrown trees, shrubs, kudzu, briars, honeysuckle and other vines that become a nuisance or block visibility at an intersection or driveway. 5 exempts wetlands and undisturbed natural areas, and lets the director of development services scale back the maintenance requirement there absent an imminent safety threat. Enforcement runs the same staged process as the city's broader sanitary-conditions rule: a 48-hour door-hanger notice, then, if uncorrected, a five-day certified-mail notice under subsection C sent to the owner of record with the Cobb County tax assessor, followed by a summons to Marietta Municipal Court under subsection D if the grass is still uncut.
4 (Weeds) of the 2006 IPMC, as amended at City Code § 7-4-2-100(V), redirects weed and rubbish cleanup entirely to this section. If the public works department ultimately has to mow the property itself, the cost of cutting becomes a lien against the property and a debt of the owner under subsection H.
Violations & Fines
A standard violation of the 12-inch limit carries a fine of up to $500.00 and/or up to 30 days in jail under § 7-4-2-110(L), plus court costs. Subsection M treats three or more offenses within one year of the first as a "recurring instance" and a public nuisance: any violation after the third in that year is punished by a fine of up to $1,000.00 and/or up to three months' imprisonment, plus costs, for each separate offense.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Marietta's maximum grass height?
Does the weed rule apply to natural or wetland areas?
How many citations before the penalty increases?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Marietta
How Marietta compares: Cities with the Strictest Weed and Property Maintenance Rules·Compare Marietta to another location·View the Georgia landscaping rules overview
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Weed Ordinances in Nearby Cities
How other cities in Cobb County handle weed ordinances.