Shire of Murray

The verge is the area of land that lies between the road edge and the property boundary set aside for public utilities, including as and water, paths and street trees.

The street verge is part of the road reserve and is land that is not owned by any one person or organisation. the Shire is responsible for controlling the development of street verges, the provision and maintenance of street trees and verge maintenance adjacent to the Shire's parks and reserves.

Verge Maintenance

The Shire of Murray relies on each person to maintain the verge at the front or side of their property. Verge maintenance by the Shire is limited to pruning and maintenance of street trees and the slashing of grass once a year, on request, to prevent fire hazards. Any further improvement work is the responsibility of the property owner to enhance aesthetics of the property.

It is not possible for the Shire to control weed growth by mechanical means, so where weed growth becomes a problem along footpaths and kerbs, the area is sprayed. The chemical glysophate is used (retailing as 'Zero'); a non-residual that kills the weed by absorption through the leaves and transferring to the root system.

Every endeavour is made not to spray well maintained verges, however sometimes this occurs inadvertently. If you prefer, your well maintained verge can be added to a list of properties which are not to be sprayed.

Verge Treatment Guidelines

The Shire of Murray recognises that road reserves form a significant proportion of public open space available to residents for improving their street scape and property value. The Shire has therefore formulated verge treatment guidelines, click here for details.