Fall Leaf Collection: When Is It Happening Near You? Here's What To Know

As the temperature drops, so do the leaves. If your yard is starting to look like a giant leaf pile, it may be time for a cleanup. There are a few ways you can handle this, such as using fallen leaves to give your soil a boost, mulching and spreading them with your lawn mower, or, if you live in a city, placing them curbside on collection day. If you opt for the latter, you may be wondering: when does fall leaf collection take place? While this varies by locality, leaf collection usually runs from October to December. Some regions start leaf collection in early October, while others don't start until after Halloween.

If you've always lived in rural areas and never participated in a leaf collection program before, the premise is simple. While guidelines vary by locality, you'll typically either rake or blow your leaves to the curbside so that a special vacuumized leaf collection truck can suction them up, or bag your leaves and place the bags curbside on a specified day of the week. However, not all locations offer pickup; some may offer a drop-off location instead. Again, drop-off services may only be available on certain days and at certain hours of the week, so it's important to check before you load up your vehicle.

The best way to find your local leaf collection pickup times or drop-off sites is to check your city or county website for specific information. If you don't know which website to visit, Google "leaf collection," plus your zip code. Your locality's website should provide details on collection and how to prepare your leaves for pick-up or drop-off. If you live in a large city, collection days might be broken up by neighborhood or zone. While using a leaf blower is often the quickest way to pile up your leaves, you can also try these 12 tips that make raking the leaves in your yard a quick and easy job if you don't have a leaf blower. And remember, that typically, only leaves can be placed curbside, and you're prohibited from mixing trash, sticks, or other yard waste with the leaves.

If your locality doesn't collect leaves with a vac truck and instead picks up bagged leaves, check specifications. The use of a brown biodegradable yard waste collection bag may be required. Again, certain items may be prohibited from being mixed with the leaves, such as food waste or rocks, so you might need to pick those out. You can also make the job easier with a leaf vac, a smart leaf blower alternative that will change the way you remove fallen leaves from your yard, making bagging leaves a cinch.