About yard waste service

Yard waste collection is included in the base fee for your Solid Waste & Recycling service. There's no extra charge for the collection of properly prepared yard waste. If you do not use the City's collection service, contact your hauler for information. 

By state law, it's illegal to throw yard waste in the garbage.

See Minnesota Statute 115A.931 Yard Waste

Collection requirements

• Yard waste must be set out in reusable containers, compostable bags or in bundles secured with string or twine.
  • Reusable containers must be 32–38 gallons in size and 26–32 inches high, with sturdy handles.
  • Kraft paper bags or compostable bags may be found at grocery, hardware or retail stores.
  • Compostable plastic bags must have the BPI logo.
• Each container, bag or bundle must weigh less than 40 pounds.
• You must set yard waste at your collection point by 6 a.m. on your pickup day.
• Yard waste cannot be mixed with your organics recycling (compost). Learn why below

We accept

• Acorns
• Branches (less than 3 feet long and less than 3 inches in diameter)
• Brush (less than 3 feet long and less than 3 inches in diameter)
• Garden plants
• Grass clippings
• Hay
• Leaves
• Mulch (no dirt or soil)
• Pine cones
• Pine needles
• Prunings from bushes or trees
• Tree bark
• Tree debris
• Twigs
• Wood chips (no dirt or soil)

We do not accept

• Branches longer than 3 feet or wider than 3 inches in diameter
• Dirt or soil
• Sawdust
• Sod
• Stumps
• Trees

For other disposal options for yard waste, see Hennepin County’s Green Disposal Guide

Pickup issues

If your yard waste is not set out for pickup properly, crews will attach a pink educational tag that describes the issue and how to fix it. If you don't fix the problem, we may add a fee to the property's utility bill.

If you have questions about the issue, contact us

Yard waste and organics recycling must be collected separately. This allows the compost facility to mix yard waste with organics at the needed ratio. If the materials are mixed when they arrive at the site, they have no way of knowing what the organics to yard waste ratio is.

Ways to reduce yard waste

• Create a low-maintenance yard. There are many alternatives to yards with large mowing spaces. Consider a no-mow lawn, pollinator habitat, creeping perennials or edible garden.

• Practice grasscycling. This means leaving grass clippings on the lawn to decompose. Grasscycling benefits your lawn and reduces the need to set yard waste out for collection.

• Compost in your backyard. Turn your yard waste into compost and use it to improve the quality of your soil and grow healthier plants.

For more information, visit:

• Minnesota Extension – Yard and garden
• Minnesota Pollution Control Agency – Composting in your backyard