Weed control protocol in the City of Beaumont area is as follows: 

• The City of Beaumont receives weed complaints through our City portal, by phone and email. In some cases, weed reporting is initiated through a City officer.
• Complaints are investigated for presence or absence of weeds.
• If the officer confirms that there is a weed problem, a notice is sent to the property owner notifying them that they have 7 to 10 days to resolve the issue.
• Once weed notices are issued and time to remedy has expired, a work order will be given to a city contractor to promptly remove the weeds. The expense for this removal will be incurred by the property owner and will be added to their annual property taxes. 
• Be aware, additional measures may be required to remove all of the weeds (ie: more than one cutting). It is the responsibility of the property owners to control the weeds on their property and to arrange the appropriate services and contractors to keep weed spread under control.

Maintain a Healthy Lawn

The most effective method of managing invasive plants/weeds is preventing their introduction and quickly responding to new occurrences. The first step in managing invasive plants is recognizing them. 

Try these tips to maintain a healthy lawn and garden and to avoid weed spread: 

• Make sure you have 15-25 cm of loam (soil with roughly equal proportions of sand, silt, and clay) and/or compost to establish a healthy lawn
• Aerate your lawn (fall and spring) and top-dress with loam to improve the soil surface
• Keep grass height on the long side – 6 cm (2 ½ inches)
• Crowd out the weeds by over-seeding your lawn
• Maintain your gardens with native plants suitable for plant hardiness Zone 3
• Practice companion planting. Certain plants like to grow closer to one another and provide benefits to each other such as repelling pests/weeds and replenishing soil nutrients

How to Avoid Weed Spread

If you notice that weeds are growing in your lawn or garden, there are several measures you can take, including:

• Hand pulling/digging weeds. This is often the most effective way to eliminate weeds because you can pull both the weed and the root system
• Mowing over weeds before they go to seed. This will help reduce the spread of the weed and in a few seasons can eliminate the weed altogether
• Talking to your local gardening expert. In some cases, companion planting can help eliminate weeds because they don’t like growing close to certain plants
• Applying an organic fertilizer which will help to promote root growth, improve your lawn’s colour and increase the resistance to disease and weeds. Organic fertilizers do not leach and run-off into our rivers, are non-toxic and non-corrosive, which make them a healthier choice compared to traditional fertilizers.
• Spraying weeds with herbicides is an option; however, we recommend this as a last resort. If you choose to use a herbicide, try spot-treating rather than treating your entire yard. Also, talk to local experts beforehand so they can tell you how to use the product properly and safely.

Spraying Technique

Green spaces in Beaumont suffer from very high concentrations of broadleaf weeds, such as dandelions. We spray the spruce trees to control the spread and destruction caused by the yellow-headed spruce sawfly.

Spraying will not take place within 30 meters of a playground or daycare, or in the flood zone surrounding any water body or waterway, including Storm Water Management Facilities.

Signs will be placed around the proposed spraying area a minimum of 24 hours prior to spraying and 48 hours after spraying.

Learn more about Beaumont’s weed and pest spraying program.

For more information:

Contact us by phone at 780-929-8782. If you have concerns about weeds at a property, please visit our Weeds and Unsightly Property Program webpage for details on the bylaw and what you can do.