Residents and property owners are legally required to maintain the grass, weeds, and scrub on their land, including the nature strip/s adjacent to their home.
Overgrowth, in addition to looking unsightly, can be a potentially serious fire hazard.
Failure to adhere to guidelines can result in significant fines.
Urban and commercial areas
In urban or commercial zones, vegetation, including nature strips, must be kept shorter than 20cm in height all year round.
Failure to adhere to guidelines can result in significant fines.
Report an overgrown nature strip online
Rural scrub clearance
If you're a rural landowner, fire authorities recommend keeping the grass shorter than 10cm to minimise the chance of fire passing from the road onto your property.
You should eliminate weeds and pest plants on your private property as they can have negative agricultural, environmental and social impacts, but be careful to retain native local vegetation, which is protected under the Whittlesea Planning Scheme.
There are some instances where you can get a planning permit to remove native vegetation.
For more information, call our Planning Department on 03 9217 2170 or email buildplan@whittlesea.vic.gov.au.
Learn more about pruning or removing a tree on private property.
Vacant land
If you own vacant land in a residential area you must ensure the grass, weeds and scrub do not grow to more than 20cm high.
Property owners who don’t comply with this requirement can face significant fines.
Report overgrown vacant land by calling us on 03 9217 2170 or email info@whittlesea.vic.gov.au.
We're responsible for slashing vegetation on Council-owned land, and cutting fire breaks at least twice during the fire danger period, or as seasonally required.
We monitor this land before and during the fire danger period to ensure we meet our responsibilities and that the grass is kept to a fire safe height.
We also issue internal fire notices at Council to ensure this standard is maintained.
You'll notice after periods of rain there may be some delays before long grass in your area is slashed.
If you believe an area requires urgent slashing, call us on 03 9217 2170 or email parks@whittlesea.vic.gov.au.
Fire authorities recommend keeping the grass shorter than 10cm to minimise the chance of fire passing from the road onto your property.
Between the months of November and March every year, a fire break of a minimum of 35m from every boundary must be maintained and not exceed 10cm in height (excluding trees).
Visit Fire prevention program for further information.
Our Local Laws address a range of issues, including unsightly land and fire safety. We have our Local Law to protect:
- community safety
- neighbourhood property
- our natural environment.
Visit New community local law 2024-2034 for further information on penalties for overgrowth on properties.