A wider view of that front lawn, the pale house set back behind the turf, with palms at the edge.
Florida Lawn Care Hub · Updated 2026-10-19
Lawn care on a Palm Beach County yard
Lawn care on a Palm Beach County yard has to follow the fertilizer distance and the clipping rule in the county presentation. You are hiring that work for a house, a rental, or an HOA lawn.
The county presentation says fertilizer stays ten (10) feet off the water, or three (3) feet with a deflector shield or drop spreader.
It also says grass clippings are not to be blown into drains, ditches, or water.
If this is your lawn, send the request. Florida Lawn Care Hub replies by email.
What the quoted page says
Palm Beach County’s MS4 coordinator presentation states the fertilizer distance and the clipping rule in these words:
Florida statute (Section 403.9337) and the Palm Beach County Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System Permit requires local governments within the watershed of a nutrient impaired water body to adopt, as a minimum, the Florida Department of Environmental Protection’s Model Ordinance for Florida-friendly fertilizer use on urban landscape. Fertilizer shall not be applied within ten (10) feet, or three (3) feet if a deflector shield or drop spreader is used, of any pond, stream, water body, lake, canal, wetland, or from the top of a seawall or lake bulkhead. In no case shall grass clippings, vegetative material, and/or vegetative debris intentionally, be washed, swept, or blown off into stormwater drains, ditches, conveyances, water bodies, wetlands, sidewalks or roadways. No Applicator shall apply fertilizer containing nitrogen and/or phosphorus to turf and/or landscape plants during the prohibited application period (heavy rainfall forecasted by the National Weather Service) or to saturated soils.
Palm Beach County presentation on the fertilizer ordinance (PDF)
| How the fertilizer is applied | Distance the presentation states |
|---|---|
| Any pond, stream, water body, lake, canal, wetland, or the top of a seawall or lake bulkhead | ten (10) feet |
| The same edge, if a deflector shield or drop spreader is used | three (3) feet |
What was not measured
The presentation does not state a turf height, a mowing interval, a monthly fee, or a fine. This page did not measure your lawn or test the soil.
Questions the quoted page can answer
What fertilizer distance does the Palm Beach presentation state?
Ten (10) feet from a pond, stream, water body, lake, canal, wetland, or the top of a seawall or lake bulkhead, and three (3) feet if a deflector shield or drop spreader is used.
What does that presentation say about grass clippings?
Grass clippings, vegetative material, and vegetative debris are not to be intentionally washed, swept, or blown into stormwater drains, ditches, conveyances, water bodies, wetlands, sidewalks, or roadways.
When does it say nitrogen and phosphorus fertilizer must stop?
During the prohibited application period, which it describes as heavy rainfall forecasted by the National Weather Service, and on saturated soils.
Does the presentation state an HOA mowing height or a fee?
No. It does not state a turf height, a mowing interval, or a fee. This page did not invent one.