St. Louis, MO Landscaping Rules: Weed Ordinances (2026)
Key Facts
- Height limit
- 7 inches before it's a nuisance
- Enforcing agency
- Forestry Commissioner
- Fine range
- $50 to $500 per violation
- Abatement window
- Start in 2 days, finish in 5
- Unpaid bill
- Becomes a lien on the property
Summary
St. Louis declares weeds and unattended vegetation over seven inches tall a public nuisance. The Forestry Commissioner can order or perform abatement and bill the property owner for the full cost of the work.
Russian, Canadian, or common thistle, wild lettuce, wild mustard, wild parsley, ragweed, milkweed, ironweed, poisonous plants or shrubs, and all other unattended vegetation and noxious weeds which have attained a height of seven (7) inches or more growing or being upon any lot or lands within the City ... are hereby declared a public nuisance. Every owner, occupant, or person in control of any lot or land within the City shall cause such lot or lands to be kept free from such noxious weeds and vegetation by destroying them.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 11).
Full Breakdown
City Code § 11.04.040 makes it a public nuisance to let thistle, ragweed, milkweed, ironweed, or "all other unattended vegetation and noxious weeds" grow past seven inches on any lot in the City. The Forestry Commissioner can abate the nuisance directly on repeat offenders, or after notice under § 11.04.070, then bill the owner under § 11.04.110: an abatement bill unpaid 90 days after mailing becomes a special tax bill sent to the Collector of Revenue and a lien on the property. Debris such as unstacked lumber, rocks, or derelict car parts is a separate nuisance category under § 11.04.060, with its own hearing before the Health Commissioner for cases on improved property under § 11.04.090.
Violations & Fines
Fine of $50 to $500, up to 90 days in jail, or both, at the court's discretion; each day a weed or debris nuisance continues unabated after notice is a separate violation under § 11.04.140.
Frequently Asked Questions
How tall can weeds grow in St. Louis before the City calls them a nuisance?
What happens if a St. Louis weed-abatement bill goes unpaid?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in St. Louis
How St. Louis compares: Cities with the Strictest Weed and Property Maintenance Rules·Compare St. Louis to another location·View the Missouri landscaping rules overview
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