Yard Waste

To schedule a bulk yard waste pick up, please read the guidelines below and then submit the request form.

Yard Waste Guidelines

Residents receive once-a-week yard waste collection service for any amount of properly prepared material. Yard waste is collected the same day as garbage and recycling. Remember to place yard waste curbside no later than 7:00 am on your scheduled collection day.

Acceptable Material:

  • Tree branches
  • Palm fronds
  • Shrubbery
  • Leaves
  • Grass clippings
  • Flower bed weeds

Preparing Brush for Disposal:

  • All yard waste must be bundled, bagged in paper lawn debris bags, placed in a standard garbage container or a brown 95-gallon City-issued yard waste tote (see below).
  • Each bundle, bag or container must weigh no more than 35 pounds. (This weight limit does not apply to the City Yard Waste Totes that are leased)
  • Before bundling, cut tree branches, palm fronds and shrubbery into pieces no longer than four feet. The bundle's diameter should not exceed two feet.
  • For your safety and the safety of your collector, please bundle palm fronds so the thorns face in one direction.
  • Do not use recycling bins, cardboard boxes or plastic bags as yard waste containers.
  • Please do not permit commercial lawn maintenance companies, professional tree trimmers, arborists, landscapers, etc., to leave yard waste curbside. These professionals MUST haul their own yard debris, as provided by City Ordinance 132-16.

Unacceptable Material:

  • Lot clearing material. Solid Waste does not collect trees and other materials as a result of a lot being cleared.
  • Stained, painted, treated, or untreated wood. Do not mix stained, painted, treated, or untreated wood with yard waste. If these wood products are mixed in, the yard waste will not be collected.
  • Dirt or Rocks cannot be mixed with yard waste.   We do not collect this item, you may take the Sarasota County Landfill to dispose of.
  • Mulch cannot be collected as yard waste.  This is considered garbage and scheduled as Bulk Garbage or bagged and put in Garbage Container.
  • Sod - We do not collect Sod of any kind.
  • Christmas trees with lights, tinsel or ornaments.  
  • Fruit
  • Straw
  • Hay

When Do I Set Material Curbside?

Please set your yard waste curbside after 6:00pm the night before your scheduled collection day, but no later than 7 a.m. the morning of collection. If your yard waste is set out after the 7 a.m. deadline, we cannot guarantee collection.   

All empty yard waste containers need to be returned to proper storage no later than 10 p.m. on your scheduled collection day. Proper storage is in your side or rear yards and not in your front yard.

Where Do I Place Material?

Place yard waste curbside and at least five feet away from the automated garbage container. Yard waste is NOT part of the one side of the street garbage collection and should be placed in front of your residence for collection.

We offer a special collection service for residents with physical disabilities who cannot get their containers to the street. Complete the Special Collection Service Request Application(DOC, 510KB) and return with the physician's certification to the City of North Port Solid Waste office at 1100 N. Chamberlain Boulevard, North Port, FL 34286 or fax (941) 240-8063. For questions, please contact Customer Service at (941) 240-8050.

Now Available: 95-gallon Yard Waste Totes

Do you dispose of yard waste on a regular basis? Did you know you can lease a 95-gallon yard waste tote?

The totes have many advantages:

  • Cost Savings - No more buying paper bags or store bought totes.
  • Convenience - No more tying and bundling yard waste piles.
  • Dependability - No more wear and tear on your personal yard waste tote.

To lease a yard waste tote, there is a one-time fee of $121.00. Simply submit the request form and we will deliver the tote on your next collection day.

Why Bag Your Grass?

Using a mulching lawnmower is more beneficial and less time consuming. Instead of bagging your grass clippings, your clippings can remain on your lawn, working their way back into the soil to enrich it and save on watering.

Mulching lawnmowers chop grass clippings into fine particles and push the particles right down into the turf out of sight. There are no grass bags or collectors to empty.

According to turf experts, grass clippings:

  1. Reduce water evaporation from the lawn
  2. Reduce lawn wear by creating a cushioning layer
  3. Facilitate better growth by keeping the soil temperature cooler
  4. Eliminate the need for fertilizers

Not only are mulching mowers quicker, they return valuable nutrients back into the lawn. You don’t need to add fertilizer or “weed and feed” products. Research showed that as much as 121 lbs of nitrogen, 112 lbs of potash and 38 lbs of phosphate were available from the clippings of a ½ acre lawn in one year.

Mulching lawn mowers recycle those nutrients back into your lawn saving you time and money!

Backyard Composting

Compost is one of nature's best mulches and soil amendments, and you can use it instead of commercial fertilizers. Most gardeners have long understood the value this rich, dark, earthy material has in improving the soil and creating a healthful environment for plants. Don't throw away materials when you can use them to improve your lawn and garden! Start composting instead.

The Benefits of Composting:

  • Saves money by producing your own rich, beneficial soil additive
  • Conserves water with better water retention in loose or sandy soils
  • Less plant distress from over wet or over dry conditions
  • Less work weeding
  • Protects plant roots from sun and wind damage
  • A feeling of achievement when your yard and garden are more attractive and you are doing your part to save resources and replenish the earth!

Yard Waste Bulk Pickups

A yard waste bulk pickup may be requested as one of your two free bulk pick ups. If you request a yard waste bulk pickup, please note the following:

  • If you are also requesting a bulk trash pickup, yard waste and trash should be separated.
  • Prohibited items listed above can not be included.
  • Make sure that your material is not placed under any wires, low-hanging trees/branches or other obstacles, and is placed at least 5 feet away from other objects (garbage totes, mailbox, etc.)
  • To ensure collection of your bulk yard waste, make sure it is placed curbside by 7 a.m. on your collection day.
  • All Yard Waste must be cut down to no longer then 4 ft. and Logs may not be larger then 18" in diameter.

Estimates available: If you're unsure of how large your yard waste bulk pick up may be, an estimate may be requested. Call Customer Service prior to your collection day and ask for a yard waste bulk pick up estimate, and we'll be happy to come out and measure your material.

To schedule a yard waste bulk pickup, please submit the request form. 

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