HENDERSONVILLE, NC (WLOS) — The City of Hendersonville posted a humorous post on its Facebook page on August 20, but it also included serious criticism of those who neglect to mow their lawns.

“We know it’s hard to hear sometimes, but maybe it’s time to mow the lawn,” the post said.

The post included a still from the movie “Honey, I Shrunk the Kids,” but the text in the City of Hendersonville’s post was changed to “Honey, it’s time to mow the lawn.”

In fact, Hendersonville has an ordinance regarding tall grass, and anyone who violates the ordinance faces fines in the form of what the ordinance calls “unpaid taxes.”

The city said in the post that its Code Enforcement Office is working to bring the properties into compliance over the next week.

“They will be combing the City of Hendersonville to ensure our community maintains its reputation as a safe, clean and charming gem of WNC,” the post said. “Our count ordinance covers more than just grass – it includes graffiti, vermin infestations, trash buildup and other public health threats.”

The regulation reads as follows:

The existence of any of the following conditions on any lot, piece of land, dwelling or building is hereby declared to be noxious, dangerous and detrimental to public health, constitutes a nuisance and is contrary to the provisions of this Article:

• Any growth of weeds or grass over 24 inches tall
• Accumulations of animal or vegetable matter or other materials which are objectionable due to strong odors, fumes, spoilage or decay, or which are infested with rats, mice, snakes or vermin of any kind.
• Any other condition which, to a person of reasonable intelligence and judgment, would constitute a condition dangerous or harmful to the public health.
• Any accumulation of garbage, trash, scrap or other discarded materials that have not been placed in a designated receptacle and can reasonably be expected to be picked up for disposal or recycling, or that have not been stored in a designated solid waste or recycling facility.
• Graffiti is any unauthorized inscription, word, figure, painting or other defacement written, marked, etched, scratched, sprayed, drawn, painted or engraved or otherwise applied with any object on any external surface of public or private property, unless the graffiti has been previously authorized by the owner or possessor.

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The city said when a Code Enforcement Office employee notifies a homeowner of an ordinance violation, the homeowner has 15 days to correct the situation. After 15 days, the city will take care of it, and the homeowner will incur costs in the form of a lien on the property, which will be collected as unpaid taxes, the city said.

Neighboring Asheville also has a landscaping ordinance, but Buncombe County does not. Asheville’s ordinance states that homeowners in the city “shall keep such land and all appurtenances free from garbage, trash, refuse, grass, or any other matter which shall cause such land and appurtenances to be a nuisance or menace to the health and welfare of citizens residing near or in the vicinity thereof.”

Anyone who does not comply with the ordinance will be subject to a civil penalty from the city, the ordinance states. However, it does not specify a specific height for the grass.