Madison Reporter

The City of Madison will begin its annual fall yard waste and leaf collection in October 2025. Residents are scheduled to receive three curbside set-out opportunities for leaf and yard waste pickup during the season. The specific dates for setting out leaves vary by neighborhood, with some areas having their first opportunity on Sunday, October 5, 2025.

To determine the correct set-out dates for a particular address, residents are encouraged to use the city's yard waste webpage. By entering an address into the online form, homeowners can view upcoming set-out dates tailored to their neighborhood.

Yard waste crews will collect items such as leaves, weeds, pumpkins, and other plant debris removed from lawns or gardens. The city reminds residents that brush is not considered yard waste; piles containing both brush and yard waste will not be collected by yard waste crews.

Residents should place their leaves and yard waste at the street edge or on the terrace rather than in the street. Materials should be kept at least four feet away from obstructions like street signs, utility poles, mailboxes, trees, stumps, and parked cars. While compostable paper bags are preferred for bagging leaves and yard waste—and should be left open so crews can inspect contents—other bags may also be used if left open. If plastic bags are used, crews may split them open during collection and leave them behind at the curb.

Collection occurs sometime during the work week following each set-out date. The date listed online indicates when materials should be placed out for collection rather than when they will actually be picked up.

Madison residents also have the option of bringing their yard waste to city drop-off sites after checking locations and hours on the drop-off site website. Composting at home is another alternative supported by free guides available at local libraries and additional resources on the Streets Division’s website. Mulching leaves in place with a lawnmower is also suggested as an environmentally friendly method that benefits lawns and local lakes.

Leaves and yard waste must not be placed in trash or recycling carts due to city regulations banning these materials from curbside carts.

For more information about collection schedules, guidelines, frequently asked questions, instructional videos about proper disposal methods—including one available on the City of Madison YouTube page—and other Streets Division services, residents can visit the Streets Division’s website.