Landscaping Rules in Oregon (2026)
59 rules on the books across Oregon, 14 cities and counties. Select a rule to read the full details.
Severity: Few Restrictions · Light Restrictions · Some Restrictions · Significant Restrictions · Heavy Restrictions
Tree Trimming
Rules about trimming trees that overhang sidewalks, streets, or neighboring properties, and when you need permission to prune city trees.
Beaverton
Some RestrictionsBeaverton requires property owners to prune trees and bushes to at least ten feet above roadways and eight feet above…
Read full rule →Bend
Some RestrictionsOwners of property next to a Bend right-of-way must keep the trees between their lot and the nearest travel lane…
Read full rule →Benton County
Some RestrictionsIn unincorporated Benton County's Urban Commercial zone, BCC § 68.410(7) caps vegetation, structures and embankments in…
Read full rule →Clackamas County
Some RestrictionsCounty code bars trees, shrubs, hedges and overhanging limbs on or near a road right-of-way if they block the view…
Read full rule →Eugene
Some RestrictionsEugene regulates how trees, shrubs and vegetation in the public right-of-way along streets, alleys and sidewalks may be…
Read full rule →Gresham
Some RestrictionsGresham requires property owners to keep vegetation trimmed so it doesn't hang lower than 8 feet over a sidewalk or 12…
Read full rule →Hillsboro
Some RestrictionsHillsboro property owners must keep limbs, bushes and other vegetation clear of the street and sidewalk in front of…
Read full rule →Lane County
Some RestrictionsIn unincorporated Lane County, trees and shrubs must clear nine feet over a sidewalk or parking strip and fifteen feet…
Read full rule →Marion County
Some RestrictionsMarion County requires no permit to trim trees on your own property, but vegetation that blocks the view of a public…
Read full rule →Medford
Some RestrictionsMedford Code Section 6.730 makes every property owner responsible for trimming, pruning, and spraying trees on private…
Read full rule →Portland
Some RestrictionsPortland requires property owners to keep tree branches trimmed to 7.5 feet above sidewalks and 11 feet above roadways…
Read full rule →Salem
Some RestrictionsProperty owners in Salem must maintain and prune trees, shrubs, or other plants on their land that project into City…
Read full rule →Tree Removal & Heritage Trees
Permit requirements for removing trees on private property, protected and significant tree thresholds, replacement planting standards, and the penalties for unpermitted removal.
Oregon: statewide
StatewideFew RestrictionsOn forestland, the Oregon Forest Practices Act (ORS Chapter 527) preempts local tree-cutting regulation. ORS 527.722…
Read full rule →Bend
Significant RestrictionsIn the City of Bend, only the City, or an adjacent property owner with a City tree permit, may plant, remove, or…
Read full rule →Benton County
Significant RestrictionsIn the High-Protection Floodplain areas of unincorporated Benton County within the Corvallis Urban Fringe, Benton…
Read full rule →Eugene
Significant RestrictionsEugene requires a permit before felling most trees on private property, with stricter thresholds on larger lots: more…
Read full rule →Hillsboro
Significant RestrictionsRemoving a mature tree, 8+ inches in diameter or a 30-foot conifer, during a Type II or Type III development…
Read full rule →Salem
Significant RestrictionsSRC 808.030 requires a City tree and vegetation removal permit before cutting a significant tree, a riparian-corridor…
Read full rule →Beaverton
Some RestrictionsRemoving trees from a Beaverton Significant Grove or Natural Resource Area triggers mitigation planting under…
Read full rule →Clackamas County
Some RestrictionsUnincorporated Clackamas County has no standalone yard-tree permit, but ZDO 1002.02 caps non-exempt removals at three…
Read full rule →Gresham
Some RestrictionsEvery parcel in Gresham, developed or vacant, falls under the city's Tree Protection, Removal and Replacement…
Read full rule →Lane County
Some RestrictionsLane County issues no yard-tree removal permit for ordinary residential lots. Commercial harvesting on forestland…
Read full rule →Marion County
Some RestrictionsUnincorporated Marion County requires no permit to remove a private tree. Inside the City of Salem, protected trees and…
Read full rule →Medford
Some RestrictionsMedford requires written permission from the Parks and Recreation Director before anyone other than a city employee…
Read full rule →Multnomah County
Some RestrictionsIn unincorporated Multnomah County's mapped Significant Water Resources (SEC-wr) overlay, no more than half of mature…
Read full rule →Portland
Some RestrictionsPortland requires tree-for-tree replacement for most permitted removals under Title 11, stepping up to inch-for-inch…
Read full rule →Washington County
Some RestrictionsRemoving trees on unincorporated Washington County land triggers Community Development Code Section 407-3, which…
Read full rule →Weed Ordinances
Requirements to keep weeds and grass below a set height, the numeric limits (commonly 8 to 12 inches), abatement notices, and the liens cities can place after mowing it themselves.
Beaverton
Some RestrictionsBeaverton caps weeds and grass on property at 12 inches; anything taller is declared 'noxious vegetation,' a public…
Read full rule →Bend
Some RestrictionsThe City of Bend does not set a maximum weed height; instead, Bend Code 13.30.005(B)(2) requires owners of tax lots…
Read full rule →Clackamas County
Some RestrictionsNo. Clackamas County has no ordinance addressing tall grass or weeds. The county states that properties outside city…
Read full rule →Eugene
Some RestrictionsEugene caps weeds and grass on undeveloped property at 10 inches between June 15 and September 30, and separately bans…
Read full rule →Gresham
Some RestrictionsGresham caps herbaceous vegetation at 10 inches on your own property as well as the planter strip and street or alley…
Read full rule →Hillsboro
Some RestrictionsHillsboro caps grass and weeds at 12 inches on every lot in the city. The Municipal Code defines anything taller as…
Read full rule →Lane County
Some RestrictionsLane Code 9.057.574 defines weeds more than ten inches high as "noxious vegetation," along with poison oak or ivy…
Read full rule →Marion County
Some RestrictionsWithin the unincorporated Salem-Keizer urban growth boundary, Marion County Code 8.15 defines nuisance vegetation as…
Read full rule →Medford
Some RestrictionsMedford bans letting grass, weeds, brush, or bushes grow past ten inches tall on any real property from May 1 through…
Read full rule →Multnomah County
Some RestrictionsMultnomah County declares uncontrolled or uncultivated weeds, brush or grass a nuisance when they harbor vectors or…
Read full rule →Portland
Some RestrictionsPortland requires property owners to cut grass and weeds in lawn areas whenever they exceed a prevailing height of 10…
Read full rule →Salem
Some RestrictionsSalem caps weeds and grass at ten inches: SRC 50.025 defines 'noxious vegetation' as weeds or grass over ten inches…
Read full rule →Washington County
Some RestrictionsUncontrolled weeds, brush or grass on unincorporated property is a declared nuisance under county code: the health…
Read full rule →Water Restrictions
Watering schedules, drought restrictions, and limits on outdoor irrigation including which days and times you can water your lawn.
Bend
Some RestrictionsIn the City of Bend, irrigation is banned every day, year-round, between 9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m., and outdoor watering…
Read full rule →Gresham
Some RestrictionsGresham's Springwater Plan District caps lawn and sod area at 10 percent of a site's undeveloped land and requires new…
Read full rule →Hillsboro
Some RestrictionsHillsboro has no standing lawn-watering schedule; non-voluntary water curtailment activates only after the City Manager…
Read full rule →Marion County
Some RestrictionsMarion County itself sets no residential watering schedule. In Salem, the Public Works Director may curtail water use…
Read full rule →Portland
Some RestrictionsPortland has no standing odd-even watering schedule. Instead, the City Administrator can order mandatory water…
Read full rule →Salem
Some RestrictionsSalem bars knowingly or negligently wasting public system water and lets the Director curtail water use citywide during…
Read full rule →Beaverton
Light RestrictionsBeaverton has no standing lawn-watering schedule; instead the city council can prohibit or restrict water use by…
Read full rule →Rainwater Harvesting
Whether you can collect rainwater, how much you can store, and any permits or tank size restrictions for residential rain barrels and cisterns.
Oregon: statewide
StatewideFew RestrictionsOregon allows rainwater collection from impervious rooftop surfaces without a water right under ORS 537.141. The…
Read full rule →Lane County
Some RestrictionsRainwater harvesting is legal statewide. ORS 537.141 exempts collecting precipitation from an artificial impervious…
Read full rule →Marion County
Some RestrictionsOregon law lets you collect rain and snowmelt from a rooftop or other artificial impervious surface without a water…
Read full rule →Portland
Some RestrictionsPortland's zoning code lets water collection cisterns 6 feet or less in height extend fully into required side and rear…
Read full rule →Native Plants
Incentives or requirements for using native and drought-tolerant plants in your landscaping, and rules about replacing traditional lawns.
Beaverton
Some RestrictionsBeaverton's Development Code requires new site landscaping to draw from approved plant lists, including Metro's Native…
Read full rule →Eugene
Some RestrictionsIn Eugene's NR Natural Resource zone, EC 9.2530 requires all planting and replanting to use native species from a list…
Read full rule →Gresham
Some RestrictionsGresham's Springwater Plan District requires landscaping plans to select native or drought-tolerant plant species…
Read full rule →Marion County
Some RestrictionsMarion County does not require any particular plants and does not ban native or xeric landscaping. Ornamental landscape…
Read full rule →Multnomah County
Some RestrictionsIn land mapped SEC-h for significant wildlife habitat, Multnomah County requires every mitigation planting to be a…
Read full rule →Portland
Light RestrictionsPortland's property maintenance code defines a 'naturescaped' yard as one planted predominantly with native plants, and…
Read full rule →Composting
Rules for backyard composting bins and piles plus curbside organics, bin requirements, allowed materials, setbacks, pest control, and any mandated diversion programs.
Portland
Some RestrictionsPortland residents get weekly curbside compost collection through the city's franchised haulers, but contaminating the…
Read full rule →Clackamas County
Light RestrictionsClackamas County does not require a permit to compost at home, but a compost pile that smells, breeds pests or creates…
Read full rule →