Maryland HOA Native Plant Law: Real Property §2-125 Explained
Maryland Real Property Article §2-125 — HB 322 (2021) (effective 2021)
Maryland Real Property Article §2-125 (enacted via HB 322, effective October 2021) prohibits property restrictions — including HOA rules and deed covenants — from imposing unreasonable limitations on low-impact landscaping. Low-impact landscaping is defined to include bio-habitat gardens, pollinator gardens, rain gardens, and xeriscaping. Critically, HOAs cannot require cultivated vegetation to consist in whole or in part of turf grass. HOAs may still set reasonable design and aesthetic guidelines regarding the type, number, and location of landscaping features.
What Your HOA Cannot Do Under Maryland Law
- ✓Impose unreasonable limitations on low-impact landscaping (bio-habitat gardens, pollinator gardens, rain gardens, xeriscaping)
- ✓Require that cultivated vegetation consist in whole or in part of turf grass
- ✓Enforce deed covenants or HOA rules that effectively prohibit a homeowner from installing a pollinator garden or rain garden
What Your HOA May Still Regulate
- –Set reasonable design and aesthetic guidelines for the type, number, and location of landscaping features
- –Require that low-impact landscaping be maintained and not appear abandoned
- –Apply guidelines that do not amount to a requirement for turf grass
The law limits what HOAs can prohibit, not what they can regulate. Keeping your landscaping maintained and intentional-looking is the most effective way to avoid friction under any HOA regime.
Official source: Maryland Real Property Article §2-125 text (opens in new tab). This page is educational context, not legal advice. For enforcement questions, consult a Maryland HOA attorney.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Maryland law protect pollinator gardens from HOA restrictions?
Yes. Maryland Real Property Article §2-125 explicitly includes pollinator gardens in its definition of protected low-impact landscaping. An HOA cannot impose unreasonable limitations on a properly maintained pollinator garden. HOAs retain the right to set reasonable aesthetic guidelines, but cannot require turf grass or effectively ban native garden areas.
What is the bill number for Maryland's HOA landscaping law?
HB 322 (2021) added the low-impact landscaping protections to the Real Property Article as §2-125. The law took effect October 2021 and applies to all HOAs, deed restrictions, and property covenants in Maryland.
Can my Maryland HOA still regulate where I put a pollinator garden?
Yes, within reason. The statute allows HOAs to set "reasonable design and aesthetic guidelines regarding the type, number, and location" of landscaping features. What an HOA cannot do is use those guidelines as a pretext to prohibit low-impact landscaping entirely or to require that you maintain turf grass.