In the present paper, we report on the rapid and cost-effective synthesis of 2D silver nanodendrites on Si substrates. The synthesis is based on electrochemical reduction of silver salts at microelectrodes. This approach requires only low volumes of chemicals of relatively low toxicity and is straightforward to be scaled up. The fabrication method presented here occurs on the order of seconds whereas other electrochemical methods can take up to an hour . The SERS substrate fabrication was visualized under a microscope, and it was observed that the nanodendrites grew horizontally along the substrates. The formation can be explained by the interplay between electromigration and mass transport of silver ions. Electrochemical characterization of the fabricated substrates suggests that the nanodendrites are not fully electrically connected to the microelectrode after deposition. These samples show SERS activity with an enhancement factor (EF) of ~10 6 obtained. To demonstrate the efficacy of the sensors, 2-methyl-4-chlorophenoxyacetic acid (MCPA) was selected as it is a widely used phenoxy herbicide used to control broad leaf weeds in pasture and cereal crops. Atomistic simulations were undertaken and revealed that the interaction between MCPA and the Ag surface was unfavorable. To overcome this limitation, substrates were functionalized with γcyclodextrin. Cyclodextrins are cyclic oligosaccharides made up of repeating glucopyranose units and have been shown to form inclusion complexes with organic contaminants owing to the hydrophobic moieties in their core . Using this approach, a limit of detection of 1mM MCPA in water was obtained.