Prairie in the City

A call from a homeowner for help with a newly purchased home was a chance to see a small front yard prairie. A notice of noncompliance from the city of Iowa City, with instructions to complete the correction within the week, led her to call me. The anonymous complaint referred to the tall planting in the yard.

My love of prairies and experience planting and growing native plants meant I was immediately interested. I contacted the senior housing inspector who met with the homeowner and me at the property and surprised us with the news that the city loves the interest its residents have in a healthy local environment that includes native plants. My client needs to complete a manageable amount of maintenance to comply with the city code for planting in the right-of-way*, the area between the sidewalk and the street. He had suggestions for managing the plants in the front yard too. He loved the prairie.

Flowers and shrubs may be planted in the City Right-Of-Way if they do not grow taller than four feet above the curb height and are grown and contained one foot inside the sidewalk and curb edge. If your property is near an intersection the plants cannot exceed two feet in height in the ‘vision triangle.’ Read the guidelines here In the city of Iowa City brochure “Planting in the Right-Of-Way”: https://bit.ly/ICPlantinginROW.

Plants in the front yard must be contained one foot inside the property line, sidewalk, and driveway. Plan and maintain your planting in the ROW and your yard to avoid plants that hang over the sidewalk and/or property line.

*The right of way includes the area from the curb to beyond the sidewalk a foot or more, where your property begins. The size may be different in your neighborhood. Exact dimensions can be found on your city or county assessor’s website, such as https://iowacity.iowaassessors.com/search.php.