Did you know that leaves and other yard wastes account for more than 20 percent of Denver's landfill waste?

 

These organic materials can be recycled, and Denver Recycles offers these tips and services:

Grass

Recycling rather than bagging your grass trimmings is the natural way to a beautiful lawn. Called Grasscycling, more and more residents are choosing to leave their grass trimmings on their lawns. Doing so helps enrich the soil because the clippings decay rapidly and return valuable nutrients and organic matter to the soil.  

Grasscycling can also save you time and money. Up to 38 percent less time is spent on lawn care, and less money is spent on plastic lawn bags, water and fertilizers.

Mulching blades that chop grass into smaller pieces are available for your gas or electric mower at local hardware stores for a nominal cost.

Many people have the misconception that Grasscycling causes thatch, however, research shows that grass roots and stems, not grass clippings, are the primary cause of thatch.

 

Denver's trees are a beautiful sight in the fall, but when the leaves start to drop, many residents find themselves overwhelmed by ever-growing mounds of leaves in their yards. 

Small amounts of leaves can be mulched by digging them into lawns and gardens. However, leaves should not be raked or swept into the street because street sweepers cannot pick up large amounts of leaves. Leaves left in gutters can clog storm drains, leading to drainage problems and flooding after rain or snow storms.

Instead, excess leaves can be recycled via the city's annual LeafDrop program that takes place every fall, usually in November. Check our News & Events section for dates and times each fall.


Mulch and Compost

Residents can help close the loop on recycling their holiday trees through the Treecycle program.  The holiday trees are ground up into mulch which is provided free back to residents.  Leaves collected through the LeafDrop program is made into compost  whick can be used yards and gardens.