Tree Protection in North Carolina (2026)

Cary's Land Development Ordinance bars removal of any designated 'champion tree' during development unless narrow…

Charlotte's UDO Section 20.14 places a protection duty on heritage trees whenever a lot undergoes new principal…

Apex has no separate heritage-tree registry; instead, new development must survey and preserve 'specimen trees', any…

Asheville defines a heritage tree by trunk diameter: 30 inches for a large-maturing species, 24 inches for medium, 15…

Fayetteville protects trees of 30 inches caliper or larger as specimen trees during development, and bars pruning or…

Greensboro's Land Development Ordinance protects large, noteworthy 'specimen trees' as the third-highest priority for…

A heritage tree, a single-trunk shade tree 24 inches DBH or larger, or an understory tree 12 inches DBH or larger, can…

Wilmington's Land Development Code protects unusually large trees as 'significant' once they cross a size threshold…

Chapel Hill has no heritage-tree ordinance in the usual sense, but the Land Use Management Ordinance lets property…

Durham does not designate individually named heritage trees, but its UDO protects large 'major specimen trees'…

In the City of Jacksonville, North Carolina, Sec. 15-77(b) lets the city mark historic and specimen trees on public…

Raleigh's UDO gives a champion tree absolute protection: Sec. 9.1.10.A.3 says no champion tree, including its critical…

Asheville protects a narrow category of "regulated trees": those on private property listed as champion or co-champion…

Cary's Land Development Ordinance protects large 'champion trees', individual trees above set caliper thresholds by…

Apex's UDO protects any tree 18 inches or larger in caliper, except pines, as a 'Specimen Tree,' triggering…

Brunswick County, North Carolina protects named heritage tree species on qualifying development sites. The UDO defines…

Chapel Hill's Land Use Management Ordinance sets diameter thresholds that make a tree a protected specimen tree…

Charlotte's Unified Development Ordinance protects "heritage trees": any tree species native to North Carolina under…

Durham's UDO defines a major specimen tree by size: an evergreen canopy tree at 18 inches dbh, a deciduous canopy tree…

Anyone who wants to plant a tree or shrub in Asheville's street right-of-way or other city property needs a written…

In the City of Burlington, North Carolina, the city controls what gets planted in the parkway strip along its streets…

New developments along Apex thoroughfares must install streetscape buffer trees in linear or clustered plantings…

Chapter 15, Section 10 of the Cabarrus County Development Ordinance requires one large canopy street tree for every 40…

Cary's Land Development Ordinance requires new development to plant upper-story shade trees along street frontage…

New single-family, duplex, triplex, or quadraplex homes in Charlotte must plant street-facing trees under UDO Section…

Concord's Development Ordinance requires an 8-foot-wide street yard along residential streets, with one shade tree for…

New Fayetteville development must plant street trees along both sides of every street: canopy trees 25 to 40 feet…

In unincorporated Franklin County, the Unified Development Code requires subdividers to plant street trees along both…

Anyone planting a tree in a Greensboro street right-of-way needs a written permit from the parks and recreation…

Greenville's tree ordinance covers every right-of-way, parkway, and city-owned off-street parking lot in the city, run…

Multi-family and non-residential subdivisions within designated growth areas of Greensboro or High Point must plant…

Harnett County requires developers of major subdivisions with more than six lots to plant or retain one deciduous…

In the City of Jacksonville, North Carolina, Sec. 15-77(a) gives the city the right to plant, prune, maintain and…

Lee County requires an eight-foot-wide street yard along every public street frontage on nonresidential and…

In the City of Mebane, North Carolina, Sec. 38-94 requires any property abutting a public right-of-way to install a…

Raleigh's Unified Development Ordinance requires street trees along new and reconstructed streets, with placement…

New development along Shelby street frontages must include a six-foot planting strip behind the curb, grassed or…

In the Town of Stedman, North Carolina, every new development must plant one street tree per 50 linear feet of street…

New subdivisions in unincorporated Union County must plant street trees roughly every 50 feet along lot frontages…

Planting trees or shrubs in a Chapel Hill public street right-of-way needs the town manager's authority under Code of…

Where a Durham street's right-of-way is too narrow for trees, the city may plant them on an adjacent private lot under…