Garden waste collections
Many households with gardens are provided with a green wheeled bin for garden waste. Please see below for details of how to take part.
When are collections?
To make things as easy as possible, your rubbish and recycling collections will take place on the same day each week - recycling and garden waste (where applicable) one week, rubbish the next week and so on. From 1 April 2013 we resume fortnightly garden waste collections.
New spring 2013 collection calendars are now available. You can use the post code checker below to print your own or if you cannot print and require a paper copy of the collection calendar (please not that we are not automatically sending them out to all households) please contact us using the details on the top right of this page.
Look up refuse and recycling collection dates
Collection Restructure summer 2013
We are currently restructuring the collection rounds to make them more efficient. We hope to implement the necessary changes to the rounds in July 2013, which may result in a change to your collection day. Prior to the start of the new collection rounds we will deliver a calendar to your house with information about any changes to your collection and dates for the rest of the year.
Bank Holiday Collections
There are no changes to your normal refuse, recycling or garden waste collections on any Bank Holidays in 2013 (with the exception of Christmas and New Year). We will collect your waste as normal on Good Friday, Easter Monday and the other Bank Holidays during the spring and summer.
What can you put into the green bin
You can put these items loose in your garden waste bin:
Yes please |
No Thanks |
|
Leaves and bark |
Soil and rubble |
|
Grass cuttings and hedge clippings |
Nappies |
|
Cut flowers and house plants |
Plastic, paper, cardboard and other packaging |
|
Garden plants and flowers |
General household rubbish |
|
Windfall fruit |
NO food and other kitchen waste |
|
Twigs and small branches |
Large whole branches |
|
Non invasive garden weeds |
Invasive weeds such as Japanese knotweed, Giant hogweed and Ragwort (seek advice on safe disposal from the Environment Agency) |
|
Pot plant compost |
Plant pots |
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Straw bedding from small vegetarian pets, such as rabbits |
Pet and animal waste i.e. from cats and dogs |
|
Christmas trees and wreaths (must be inside the bin so please chop up ) |
Christmas decorations |
Why can't I put kitchen waste or vegetable/fruit peelings in the wheelie bin?
The Animal By-products legislation does not allow kitchen waste and garden waste to be composted together. You could start composting at home by buying a home compost bin for your own kitchen waste at home.
What should I do if I have more garden waste than will fit inside the bin?
Please make sure your garden waste is inside your wheeled bin with the lid shut. Do not put the waste into bags.
You could buy a home compost bin to compost your own kitchen waste at home. Alternatively you could take your extra garden waste to a Household Waste Recycling Centre for composting.
Need a bin?
Please contact us if you need to request a replacement garden waste bin.
What happens to the garden waste once it has been collected?
The garden waste is composted at Yorwaste Ltd's facility at Harewood Whin, Rufforth, to produce a soil conditioner. Some of this is bagged and sold at Hazel Court Household waste recycling centre, priced £2.50 for a 50 litre bag. It is advisable to contact us to check the stock level before visiting the site to purchase bags.
We also give away free compost to residents on the first Sunday of every month, March to October 2013. See our compost pages for details.
Help with collections
Please contact us if you need help with your rubbish, garden waste or recycling collections. Residents who have difficulties putting the recycling boxes or wheeled bin out for collection, due to reasons of age and disability, should get in touch with the council to see if they are eligible for an assisted collection.
To apply for an assisted collection service please contact us to request the application form.
How to recycle your real Christmas tree
If you are able to cut your Christmas tree and fit it in the bin with the lid closed we will collect it on your next scheduled garden waste collection day. Christmas trees can also be taken to Hazel Court or Towthorpe Household Waste Recycling Centres for composting in the garden waste skips.
Frozen bin policy
Due to the high water content of garden waste, we regularly find bins where the contents have frozen during cold weather. When the water freezes it expands so the material inside the bin (especially wet leaves) becomes stuck. This may prevent us from emptying your bin.
Every effort is being made to empty as many green wheelie bins as possible. We will try and shake the contents out, but under extreme cold weather conditions, the wheelie bins become brittle and we do not want to damage bins unnecessarily.
To help us ensure your bin is emptied please loosen the contents if they have frozen
If your green bin is not emptied, because the contents are frozen, please report this to us. We will let you know when we will return to try and empty it. Please loosen the contents before collection.