Weed Spraying: Guidance

Our weed spraying programme

All streets within Gloucester City will be weed sprayed where weed growth is evident, following on from that once the weeds have died back, they will be removed. The schedule takes place throughout the summer, due to the nature of the work we are unable to provide residents with an exact schedule for their road and the spraying taking place will be weather permitting (cannot be done when windy or raining). During 2026 a trial is taking place within the Westgate ward and no weed spraying will take place. Further information can be found here.

Residents can remove weeds from outside their property themselves if they wish, but they should not use herbicides on public land as these can be toxic.

Our herbicide policy

As of 2025, the Council’s routine herbicide policy involves a single annual spray of all qualifying areas, as part of a planned reduction in chemical spraying in-line in with the Gloucester Glyphosate Reduction Strategy.

The glyphosate herbicide applied by the council is currently ‘Nomix Duplex’ MAPP18350 and in some locations Belchim Crop Protection - Chikara Bayer Round up Provantage.Both are used within strict guidelines and only when weather conditions are suitable for application. It is applied via a method known as ‘micro-dosing’ in which a small amount of the herbicide is applied directly to the plant, rather than ‘sprayed’.

In some circumstances a glyphosate based herbicide may also be used to treat existing vegetation prior to replanting an area with wildflower seed. In these circumstances a knapsack or tractor mounted sprayer may be used.

The programme of herbicide spraying is assisted by the street cleaning schedule, where mechanical sweeping supports manual cleansing throughout the City and ‘deep cleans’ in streets where access is difficult due to parked vehicles.

Any additional treatments will be limited to cases of excessive or obstructive plant growth and for the removal of invasive or dangerous plants such as Knotweed and Giant Hogweed.

Responsibility

The City Council has taken a responsible approach to the use of chemical herbicides in weed treatment and the environment by adopting the Gloucester Glyphosate Reduction Strategy. The current policy of annual spraying for all qualifying areas is part of a planned process of glyphosate reduction alongside regular sweeping and where necessary the physical removal of weeds via mechanical sweeper or hand tool.

All pesticide application will be carried out in accordance with the Code of Practice for Using Plant Protection Products (2015).

You can find out more about the Council’s Glyphosate Reduction Strategy here.