Minneapolis leaf bag and brush pickup ends week of Nov. 15
Your garbage day in the week of Nov. 15 is the final opportunity in 2010 for the collection of leaves, brush and other yard trimmings by the City of Minneapolis at no additional charge. Set bags of leaves and bundles of brush next to your garbage cart by 6 a.m.
Branches and leaves must be tied or bagged. Leaf bags must be smaller than 33 gallons and weigh less than 40 pounds. Branches must be less than three inches in diameter and less than three feet long, and bundles must weigh less than 40 pounds.
If you have questions about leaf and brush pickup, call 673-2917 from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. It is against the law to brush your leaves into the street.
Or… ‘recycle’ your leaves and grass clippings
- When you mow, leave your grass clippings where they fall. A year’s worth of grass clippings can provide a lawn with nitrogen equivalent to one application of fertilizer.
- Compost your organic waste (coffee grounds, fruit and vegetable peels, etc.) and yard waste. You’ll end up with your own compost to plant your spring gardens.
- Leaves make excellent mulch. They help prevent weeds, hold soil moisture, maintain lower soil temperatures in the summer, and protect against temperature fluctuations and low temperature injury in the winter. They eventually decompose, adding their nutrients to the soil and improving the soil structure. Instead of bagging your leaves, use them at home by:
- spreading them as mulch around trees and shrubs and in planting beds
- adding them to your compost pile
- leaving some of them where they fall
- Plan ahead for next year by looking into lower-impact, environmentally friendly practices like rain gardens and native planting.
- Make homemade wooden trellises or think up your own creative uses for branch trimmings.
- For more information, visit http://hennepin.us/sustainablelandscaping.
For more information about the City's yard waste collection program, visit Solid Waste & Recycling.
Published Nov. 12, 2010