Japanese knotweed specialists in Sheffield

Guidance from Sheffield City Council

• The council covers knotweed briefly within its general guidance on weeds and grounds maintenance.
• Invasive weeds such as knotweed on council-managed land are still treated with glyphosate, applied by stem injection to reduce the amount used.
• The council cites its legal duty under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 to manage invasive species.

Further information is available on the council's website: Problems with plants, trees, weeds and grass.

Local background

• Sheffield City Council awarded a Japanese knotweed and invasive species eradication services contract running from February 2024 to February 2028. (source)
• The council's December 2024 plans for a country park at Parkwood Springs include treating knotweed on the former Sheffield Ski Village site. (source)

The law in England

It isn't an offence to have Japanese knotweed on your land, but under section 14 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 it is an offence to plant it or otherwise cause it to grow in the wild. Government guidance says you must stop it spreading off your property. Soil or plant material containing it is likely to be controlled waste, which must only go to an authorised site, and councils can use community protection notices where someone's failure to deal with it unreasonably affects people nearby.

See our guidance on Japanese knotweed and the law.