Last week residents of the royal burgh attended a meeting of the community council to raise their concerns and call for action.
They say the grass is left splattered across headstones, some plots have sunk and weeds litter the few pathways.
Rosalind Smith: “It is an absolute mess.
“My husband died two years ago and is buried in Lochmaben, but my mother and father are buried in Lockerbie.
“I pay the same rates as everybody else yet Lochmaben cemetery is an absolute disgrace and Lockerbie is much better.
“It sticks in my throat that I pay the same rates and they get preferential treatment.”
She explained it has been a long-term problem and added: “It is a big enough ordeal going without having to take paper towels and water to clean the headstone you are visiting.
“It looks like a farmer’s hayfield.”
Responding, chairwoman Pam Linton said: “I don’t think anyone enjoys going to the cemetery and it is much harder when the stones are thick with grass.”
Meanwhile, another two mourners explained they often take shears and other garden tools to tidy up the area as best they can.
One said: “When I arrived I was shocked with the unkempt state of it.
“It just looks terrible, I bring a cloth to wipe down the headstones but I shouldn’t have to.
“And the grass doesn’t just cover the headstones, it is all over the flowers so they might as well just get binned.”
Responding to the concerns, a council spokeswoman said: “All of our cemeteries are kept to the same regime with no preferential treatment given to any.
“The difference is with the grass in Dryfesdale Cemetery – Dryfesdale is very mossy which limits grass growth and reduces the amount of grass left lying after every cut.
“We operate a cut and leave service in all our cemeteries, however, to assist people to place fresh flowers and to clean the stones, there is a water tap located within Lochmaben Cemetery – just inside the main gate.
“The paths will be weed-killed and tidied up as soon as possible.”
