Owning a house is a dream of many. And when you get to realize that dream, you want your home to look as good as possible. One of the key aspects of home design is gardening and landscape design. As a homeowner, you would want to compliment the look of your home as much as possible and gardening and landscaping are some of the best ways to get that done.
However, you cannot simply go about having a garden or a landscape on your own. Though the federal law doesn’t require you to consult a landscaping agency to get your landscaping done rather you have to follow certain rules and regulations.
These rules and regulations apply to any new home wishing to work on their gardening and landscape design. The laws differ from state to state and in this article, we will focus on the gardening and landscape laws in Nebraska.
Contents
Plan Review
Most of the states in the US don’t require the plan of landscaping to be reviewed by the city council of the state. That is, for single-house residences. The review law is applicable for all types of commercial and industrial landscape design.
However, in the state of Nebraska, you need to have your landscape design approved by the city council regardless of the status of your property. This doesn’t apply to gardening, rather only the landscape design.
A formal application should be submitted to the city council along with the review proposal. A representative will verify the plan outline to see whether it meets the state requirements. Only then, you will be allowed to work on your landscaping.
Gardening Requirements
You do not need to submit a gardening plan to your city council. However, if you are a new homeowner and would like to start a garden in your backyard, there are certain things you need t to comply with.
Firstly, you need to submit a document outlining all the plantations and vegetation that are in existence already within your property. This is done to protect rare as well as growing vegetation within the state. Secondly, you also need to submit a document outlining the plantation that you plan to include in your garden and landscape. The state of Nebraska has a set of plantation limits that don’t let you plant vegetation that is deemed invasive for the ecosystem. You need to make sure you comply with the requirements.
Landscaping Regulations
There is a set of landscape regulations outlined by the state of Nebraska for landscaping as well. Depending on the size of your property, the size of the sidewalk of the landscape is determined. However, the street cannot be any wider than 20 feet as per the state regulation. In addition to the street regulation, the plantation regulations apply for landscape design as well.
Use of Inorganic Material
The state law of Nebraska regulates the usage of inorganic material in gardens as well as landscapes. As per the regulation, you cannot use any form of artificial tree or shrub in your garden as well as your landscapes. This is strictly prohibited. As for the inorganic material like stones and decorative can be used but they cannot exceed more than 35% of the designated area for landscapes.
Other inorganic material like pavements and roads also needs to follow regulation as per the allotted percentage of the landscape. The law also outlines some of the plants that you can plant in your garden and landscapes. You are encouraged to stick with them. In addition to that, if you want to plant something that is not on the list, you have to inform the city council beforehand. The State encourages that you plant vegetations that are already native to the state.
Installation Standards to be Followed
- Evergreen Trees: Height should not exceed 30 feet and not below 6 feet
- Shrubs: At least spread equivalent of 2 gallons.
- Ground shrubs: At least 18 inches of space between each plantation.
- Deciduous Shade: the diameter of each plantation should be at least 2 inches.
- Ornamental Deciduous trees: Same as deciduous shade.
Maintenance
As per the state law of Nebraska, you are the sole authority when it comes to the maintenance of your garden and landscape. The state requires that you will take appropriate measures to maintain and develop your garden and landscapes and make sure that it complies with the existing state regulations.
Conclusion
Almost all of us are familiar with gardening and landscaping and many of us even opt to try them out to increase the overall aesthetics of our home. However, there are certain sets of regulations that you need to comply with to make sure you do not run into any trouble with the authority.
In this article, we focused on the state of Nebraska for and how the laws can affect your gardening and landscaping ventures. Before you start developing your garden or your landscapes, make sure you conform to these regulations so there are no issues down the line.
Also Read: Gardening and Landscape laws in Massachusetts – State Gardener
