Yard Waste

Quickly find out when to set out your yard waste

 

The City picks up yard waste every other week on garbage collection day from mid-March to mid-December as well as Christmas trees in January. The yard waste that is collected is turned into compost, some of which is offered to the public for free at Community Environment Days. The City’s yard waste program allows it to divert nearly 90,000 tonnes of yard waste from landfill each year.

  • Leaves
  • Small tree branches, trunks, stumps (see disposal information below)
  • Plant material including weeds and brush
  • Mulch
  • Pumpkins, corn stalks
  • Christmas trees (curbside collection on designated days in January and Drop-Off Depots year-round)

These materials should not be put in yard waste or garbage:

  • Grass clippings
  • Sod
  • Soil (remove excess soil from pulled weeds)

Leave grass clippings on your lawn to help build healthy, nutrient-rich soil. Alternatively, contact a private company to arrange for proper disposal of the above items.

All invasive plants must be placed in a secured plastic bag and set out as garbage (not yard waste). Examples of invasive plants include:

  • giant hogweed
  • dog-strangling vine
  • garlic mustard
  • Manitoba maple
  • Norway maple
  • buckthorn
  • Japanese knotweed
  • Place yard waste in kraft paper yard waste bags or rigid open-topped containers (with an external height no less than 55 centimetres and no greater than 95 centimetres, with the exception of blue and grey boxes previously used for recycling). Yard waste in plastic bags or cardboard boxes will not be collected.
  • Place items next to your Garbage Bin for pick-up on your collection day. Yard waste should not be placed out earlier than 8 p.m. the night before your collection date.
  • Store yard waste on your own property (close to your home) between collections, not on City property.
  • Secure brush and branches in bundles no longer than 1.2 metres (4 feet), no wider than 0.6 metres (two feet) and no heavier than 20 kilograms (44 lbs).
  • The diameter of wood set out for collection cannot exceed 7.5 centimetres (three inches). For items that exceed this size, make arrangements with a private company.
  • Yard waste that meets the above size requirements can also be taken to one of the City’s Drop-Off Depots year-round.

Note: Residents employing landscaping contractors to maintain their properties are responsible for making sure contractors follow the rules as well.