ARTICLE XII – DECORATION OF PLOTS
1. Cemetery Authority: The Cemetery shall have the authority to remove all floral design, flowers, weeds, trees, shrubs, plants, or herbage of any kind, from the Cemetery, as soon as, in the judgment of the Sexton, they become unsightly, dangerous, detrimental, or diseased, or when they do not conform to the Rules and Regulations. The Cemetery shall not be liable for floral pieces, baskets, or frames in which or to which such floral pieces are attached, beyond the acceptance of such floral pieces for funeral service held in the Cemetery. They shall not be liable for lost, misplaced, or broken flower vases. The Cemetery shall not be responsible for frozen plants or herbage of any kind, or for plantings damaged by the elements, thieves, vandals, or by caused beyond its control. The Cemetery reserves the right to remove any decorations, flowers, floral designs, trees, shrubs or plants, or herbage of any kind.
2. Prohibited in Cemetery: The following items are specifically prohibited, and if so placed, the Sexton reserves the right to remove same:
a. The placing of boxes, shells, toys, metal designs, ornaments, chairs except those located on the base of the monument.
b. Glass, wood, concrete or iron articles;
c. Shrubs, planted flowers, trees or other plants;
d. Marble chips, decorator rocks or wood chips around monuments or markers
e. Window boxes, pots, glass jars.
f. Shepherds hooks, wind chimes and hanging baskets.
g. Coping, curbing, fencing, hedging, grave mound borders, or enclosures of any kind around any lot; and no walks of brick, cinders, tile, stone, marble, terracotta, sand, cement, gravel or wood.
h. Surfaces other than earth or sod.
i. Effective July 1, 2021, no more temporary markers of any kind are permitted in the cemetery.
3. Holiday specific decorations are allowed three days before through three days after the following holidays: Easter, Memorial Day, Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, Halloween and Thanksgiving. This includes items on bases, monuments and in vases.
Halloween decorations specifically must be placed with careful consideration, please be very cognizant of being within sacred grounds and limit Halloween decorations to small items such as artificial pumpkins or jack-o-lanterns. While Halloween is a holiday many children enjoy, most decorations would be inappropriate during a funeral service or within the somber nature of a cemetery. The Cemetery reserves the right to remove any decorations that violate the sacred nature of its grounds or fall outside the rules and regulations.
4. Plantings: All work and all planting of any kind on all lots and graves is prohibited. The Cemetery has the right to direct the removal of any inappropriate decorations, flowers, potted plants, and wreaths when they become withered. No shrubs, trees or flowers shall be planted without the approval of the Cemetery. Any of the foregoing items planted without such approval may be removed. Trees and shrubs which have died or become unsightly shall be removed by the Sexton. The Sexton is ordered to make such removals when in his judgment it is in the best interests of the Cemetery.
5. Height Limitation: No decoration over one foot in height is permitted in the Cemetery.
6. Flags: Within 5 days following Memorial Day, the individual, group or organizing placing flags in Cemetery shall remove the flags and store them off Cemetery property. If any flag is not removed within that time period, the Cemetery may remove it. Any flag so removed shall be kept in a safe location at the Cemetery maintenance building. The individual, group or organization originally placing the flag may pick it up at the maintenance building. Within 1 week after July 5, all flags left on Cemetery grounds shall be collected by the Cemetery and, along with any flags stored in the maintenance building.
7. Removal: As soon as decorations, flowers (including receptacles), flags or emblems used at funerals for the adornment of graves, crypts or niches becomes unsightly, dangerous, detrimental, diseased, a nuisance to maintenance efforts or when they do not conform to the standard maintained, they will be removed and no responsibility for their return to the Owners will be assumed.
Item Removed
Christmas & Valentine’s Day decorations including poinsettias Mar 1 – Thanksgiving Day
Items on ground in mowers way Mar 1 – Thanksgiving Day
8. Landscaping: The Cemetery will undertake to maintain, as may be practicable, the planting of trees and shrubs, to preserve and maintain landscape features, but does not undertake to maintain individual plantings or urns of plants.
9. Cooperation Request: The Cemetery encourages the use of floral tributes on the graves of loved ones, however, the beauty and continuity of the Cemetery depends on the cooperative efforts of all families who have loved ones in the Cemetery care.
10. Funeral Designs: All funeral flowers and graveside items must be removed within ten (10) days of the funeral; otherwise they will be removed and discarded.
11. Winter Decorations: All winter decorations, not on the monument or its foundation, must be removed by March 1 of each year.
12. Placement: Any item placed in the Cemetery shall be in line with the existing row of headstones so as not to hamper mowing duties.
13. Ownership: Temporary decorations must be durable, suitably anchored, and easily removable. Temporary decorations become the property of the Cemetery as soon as they are placed and can be removed or modified at any time without notice.
14. Fresh Flowers: Fresh flowers are permitted and the Cemetery encourages their use.
15. Wreaths: Wreaths are permitted between November 1st through March 1st. Cemetery will remove wreaths and stands starting on March 1st.
16. Graves Without a Monument: To maintain consistency and the beauty of the cemetery as well as ensuring upkeep and necessary maintenance, those families waiting for their monument delivery are asked to limit their decorations to 2-3 small items at the head of their loved one’s grave. Families are asked to be mindful of any tokens or decorations left by others that would cause them to exceed the 2-3 item limit. The cemetery, at its discretion and without notice, will remove any decorations which may create a safety hazard or cause additional maintenance burdens.
