Will my Garbage Collector Haul my Leaves?

In Minneapolis and St. Paul, and other cities in the Metro area, the answer is probably yes. In Minneapolis, the city will take leaves and other yard waste as part of your regular trash collection. In St. Paul, where residents contract with individual garbage collectors, you may need to pay an extra fee to have leaves hauled away.

Other options available to residents is to take leaves to a yard waste dump site, operated by the county.

However you want the leaves off your property, a new piece of legislation affects you. All leaves must be bagged in compostable or biodegradable sacks, or a re-usable container which can be dumped out. Plastic bags may not longer be used.

Other options available to you include shred the leaves with a lawnmower and use them as free lawn mulch.

Or compost them, to make a bin full of compost all ready for spring planting.

Here's the lowdown on raking, bagging, hauling, mulching, composting leaves in Minneapolis and St. Paul, and the Twin Cities.