Charlestown to remove overgrown and unauthorized plants from cemeteries

Charlestown will begin removing overgrown, diseased and unauthorized plantings from Pine Crest Cemetery and Hope Hill Cemetery on June 1, a move the town says is meant to protect headstones, improve the look of the grounds and make maintenance safer and more efficient.

The work will target shrubs, trees and permanent plantings that exceed lot dimensions, spill onto neighboring plots or otherwise violate cemetery rules. Town officials are framing the effort as an enforcement of existing standards, not a one-time cleanup aimed at a single family or lot. That matters in Charlestown, where cemetery landscaping can become sensitive when long-standing plantings or memorial arrangements are involved.

The town’s cemetery rules are already strict. They prohibit enclosures of any kind, including fences, copings, hedges and ditches around lots. They also prohibit planting trees and shrubs, allowing plants only in pots. Artificial flowers and containers that are not removed by owners by October 31 may be removed by the Sexton. Together, those rules show the June 1 work is part of an existing framework for how Pine Crest and Hope Hill are supposed to be maintained.

Charlestown says the rules are also about preserving usable space and preventing damage. Dense growth can block mowing routes, hide obstacles and create upkeep problems for cemetery staff. Roots and branches can also threaten nearby markers and burial spaces over time, especially in active cemeteries where lot lines need to stay clear and visible.

Families with questions are being directed to Matthew Lockhart at the cemetery office, which is listed at the Cemetery Building, 215 Springfield Road, P.O. Box 385, Charlestown, NH 03603. The office phone numbers are (603) 826-9751 and (603) 371-7194. The town lists Cemetery Trustees Roger Goodnow, Kathleen Ferranti and John Lambert, who meet on the third Tuesday of the month at 5:30 p.m. in the Cemetery Building.

Pine Crest and Hope Hill are not minor burial grounds. Find a Grave lists 744 memorial records for Pine Crest and 850 for Hope Hill, while Pine Crest’s burial-record database lists 3,756 records. Pine Crest is also identified in the town rules as the location for green burial plots, adding another layer of importance to how the cemetery is managed.

New Hampshire’s RSA chapter 289 sets out municipal duties for cemetery maintenance, enforcement and protection of burial grounds. In Charlestown, the June 1 cleanup signals a firm insistence that cemetery plantings stay within the rules already on the books.