Janesville Tall Grass Ordinance: the 12-Inch Rule

The rule

Each growing season, the City of Janesville's Operations Division handles private properties that are not in compliance with ordinance 22-204, "Noxious Weeds, Gardening, Natural Landscaping and Composting," which limits the height of grass and weeds to a maximum of 12 inches and prohibits noxious weeds (City of Janesville, tall weeds and grasses). The title is a reminder that the ordinance covers more than lawns: gardens, natural landscaping and compost piles are in the same chapter.

What happens after a complaint

1. A resident or city staff reports the property.
2. A city inspector verifies that it is out of compliance.
3. The owner gets a notice: a door hanger left at the property, a letter in the mail, or both.
4. After 7 days, city staff re-inspect.
5. If the work is not done to an acceptable height, the city contracts or performs it at the owner's expense, under ordinance 22-209.

The city describes its policy as giving the owner the chance to cut the grass at their own expense within a reasonable time first. The notice goes to the property owner, so a landlord whose tenant has stopped mowing is the one who hears about it, and the one who gets the bill.

How fast a lawn reaches 12 inches

A Wisconsin lawn mowed at the height UW-Madison Extension recommends, 2.5 to 3.5 inches, has room to grow before it gets near the limit, but not much in late May. Extension notes that in spring a lawn can need mowing twice a week just to stay within the one-third rule (UW-Madison Extension, Lawn Maintenance). A two- or three-week trip in May or June, a vacant house between tenants, or a rental where nobody owns the mower is how most properties end up with a door hanger.

Cutting a lawn that has gotten that tall is also harder on the grass. Taking it from 12 inches to 3 in one pass removes three quarters of the blade, far past the one-third rule, so a first cut on an overgrown lawn is usually done in two passes a few days apart, with the clippings bagged.

How to report a property, or answer a notice

Reports go to City Services at (608) 755-3110. If you are the one with the door hanger, the clock is the 7-day re-inspection, and the cheapest outcome is the lawn cut before the inspector comes back. A first cut on an overgrown lawn runs $74 to $109 in Janesville (GreenPal, Janesville), and regular mowing after that $39 to $55 a visit; both are on the lawn care cost page.

Clippings: the other half of the rule

Cutting the grass is half of it. Ordinance 34-341 keeps clippings and lawn debris out of the gutter and street in every season, so the clippings from that first big cut go back on the lawn or in paper bags, not into the road (City of Janesville, stormwater). Bagged yard waste only goes out at the curb during the city's two collection weeks; the rest of the year it goes to the compost site, covered in the yard waste and leaf pickup guide.

Staying ahead of it

The simple fix for an absentee owner, a rental or a long summer away is a standing weekly lawn mowing route, which keeps the lawn at a healthy height and the property off the inspection list.