The City provides curbside leaf collection services each fall, to assist residents with the disposal of leaves. This program is considered a signature City service, with Public Works Division Staff dedicated solely to this task throughout the duration of the program.
Designated as a Tree City USA by the National Arbor Day Foundation since 1990, Upper Arlington is home to an extensive, mature urban forest, with over 17,000 street trees and many thousands of trees in the community’s parks and on private property. As a result, crews collect an average of 20,000 cubic yards of leaves each season from the City’s 346-lane-miles of roadway.
The Public Works Division has prepared a Leaf Collection Plan that summarizes the program in greater detail, which can be accessed in the Resources section below.
The 2023 leaf collection season is now complete.
Now that the Leaf Collection Program has ended, please place leaves in approved biodegradable bags or trash cans clearly marked as “Yard Waste” and put them out for collection on your regular Solid Waste collection day, OR you can can take advantage of free drop-off of yard waste at the Ohio Mulch facility, located at 4120 Roberts Road (call 614-921-9330 or visit www.ohiomulch.com/apps/store-locator for hours of operation).
The City’s Leaf Collection Program typically runs from mid-October through early December. Each year, notices of the specific start and end dates for the program are provided in advance via City print and e-newsletters, social media and on this website. The program is typically comprised of five pass throughs (rounds) of the City by collection crews. Residents are advised to refrain from placing leaves at the curb until approximately one week before the start of the program AND to stop raking leaves to the curb at least one week before the program ends.
Each collection season differs, due to varying weather conditions and how quickly leaves fall. For example, an early frost may cause leaves to drop earlier than usual. In turn, varying leaf fall volumes and weather conditions impact how quickly crews can complete a thorough sweep of the City. We appreciate your patience during periods of a particularly heavy leaf fall and/or an early snowfall. A Leaf Collection Tracking Map is posted here each season, providing residents a means to anticipate when collection crews are likely to be on their street (see below).
Leaf Pile Placement
Residents are asked to follow these guidelines when taking advantage of this program:
- Do not put leaves out for collection until one week prior to the start of the program.
- DO NOT PLACE LEAVES IN THE GUTTER OR ON THE STREET – Leaves should be placed on the grass behind the curb, close to the edge of the street, no further than two feet behind the curb.
- Do not place rocks, sticks, firewood, pumpkins or any other objects in leaf piles. This can be extremely dangerous for our crews.
- Keep leaf piles away from sign posts, light poles, trees and mailboxes.
- Do not allow leaf piles to block storm sewers as this can increase the chance of flooding in the event of heavy rain.
- Parked vehicles need to be at least fifteen feet away from either side of leaf piles so that collection crews have safe access to the leaves with their truck and leaf machine.
- As the program nears its end for the season, be sure to have leaves out for collection at least one week before the official end date for the program.
- When the Leaf Collection Program is not in effect, residents should place leaves in approved biodegradable bags or trash cans clearly marked as “Yard Waste” and put them out for collection on your regular Solid Waste collection day, OR residents can take advantage of free drop-off of yard waste at the Ohio Mulch facility, located at 4120 Roberts Road (call 614-921-9330 or visit www.ohiomulch.com/apps/store-locator for hours of operation).
Please Note: Putting leaves out early or once the program has concluded may cause other residents to contact the City’s Code Compliance Division. If the situation is not rectified following initial notification from the City, Code Compliance is required to issue a formal notice to the property owner, with possible fines resulting.
While there is no set schedule for leaf collection, residents can better anticipate when crews will be on their street by checking our Leaf Collection Tracking Map. The map is updated daily to show which streets have been completed in each round of collection.
At the start of each round, one truck is in each of the six districts. Beginning in Zone A of their district, each truck works through the streets of each zone until their district is complete (Zone A, then Zone B, then Zone C, etc.). Once all districts are complete, the next round of collection begins.
2023 *ESTIMATED* COLLECTION SCHEDULE:
1st ROUND – Begins Oct 16 COMPLETE
2nd ROUND – Begins Oct 23 COMPLETE
3rd ROUND – Begins Oct 30 COMPLETE
4th ROUND – Begins Nov 3 COMPLETE
5th ROUND – Begins Nov 8 COMPLETE
6th Round – Begins Nov 14 COMPLETE
7th Round – Begins Nov 20 COMPLETE
LAST DAY TO RAKE – Sunday, Dec 3
FINAL ROUND – Begins Monday, Dec 4 COMPLETE
If you have any questions about the collection process, please contact the Public Works Division, at 614-583-5350.
Mulching is a great way to dispose of leaves without raking, and can be done quickly and easily using any lawnmower. When leaves begin to fall, mow your lawn just as if it were any other day, mowing over the leaves during each pass. Depending on the volume of leaves that have fallen on your lawn, it might take more than one pass to get the shreds to the desired size. To reap all the benefits of mulching, simply leave the shredded leaf bits in the grass. They will filter through the grass and decompose, acting as a natural fertilizer and weed control agent. Consider mulching on a weekly basis during the height of the season to help prevent the accumulation of too many leaves.
Leaf Collection (11)
The dates will vary each year but generally the leaf collection program runs from late October through early December.
Leaves should be placed on the grass behind the curb, close to the edge of the street – but not in the street – no further than two or three feet behind the curb. Leaf piles will not kill grass, although there may be some temporary discoloration.
Leaves should always be placed in the grass near the edge of the street – but not in the street. Leaf piles will not kill grass, although there may be some temporary discoloration.
While there is no set schedule for leaf collection, residents can better anticipate when crews will be on their street by checking our Leaf Collection Tracking Map. The map is updated daily to show which streets have been completed in each round of collection.
Our goal is to complete a total of five (5) collections on every street before the conclusion of the program.
Crews will always make their best effort to pick up all leaves that are out for collection. However, there are a few circumstances that may prevent crews from being able to reach the leaves including: cars parked in front of or too close to leaf piles, leaves too far from curb (unable to reach with vacuum hose), other debris included in leaf pile, etc.
Before and after the conclusion of the program, leaves can be bagged and placed at the curb on your normal refuse pickup day or dropped off free of charge at Ohio Mulch.
No, only loose leaves are acceptable for this collection program. Do not place other yard waste material such as tree branches, pumpkins, potted plants, grass clippings, soil and other garden waste as it will not be collected; please utilize the curbside yard waste program for disposal of this type of material.
Safe roadways are always our priority so in the event of a snow event, leaf collection operations would cease until all roadways have been returned to a safe, drivable condition. If leaf collection operations are able to resume after a snow event, residents will be responsible for re-raking any leaves that are pushed back into yard from snow plowing operations. In the event the City is unable to resume leaf collection operations, residents will be asked to bag any remaining leaves and set them out for collection on your normal pick-up day.
Yes, residents have the option of composting leaves on their property. However, all composting activities must comply with City of Upper Arlington code provisions; see Chapter 6.07 (O). Residents having specific questions regarding composting provisions should contact Code Enforcement at 614-583-5073.
On average, the City collects approximately 20,000 cubic yards of leaves each season – that is enough leaves to fill the football field at the ‘Shoe, end-zone to end-zone and nearly 10 feet deep!