Wrightstown Township has adopted a revised landscaping ordinance requiring that at least 80% of trees, shrubs and ground cover used in land development projects be native to eastern North America, citing native species' greater longevity and resistance to insects and disease. For the first time, the ordinance also mandates that property owners perpetually maintain all landscaping shown on approved development plans, including replacing dead or damaged plants and removing invasive species from buffer areas. Other changes include reducing the required caliper size for newly planted shade trees from three inches to two-and-a-half inches to improve survival rates, restricting street trees to within the property rather than in the right-of-way, strengthening parking area landscaping standards with an emphasis on shade and heat reduction, and updating definitions for buffer yards, tree protection zones and woodlands. The board also authorized a resolution giving property owners the option to follow either the old or new regulations when restoring existing plantings.
Source: Bucks County Herald; 6/10/2026