What yard waste removal covers in a Los Angeles house
The pickup carries bagged yard waste: paper yard bags of trimmings, clippings and leaves, and short bundled brush already sitting on the ground. Tree work and anything still growing are not on this page.
Bagged trimmings and clippings
Grass clippings from a mow or two, trimmings from a hedge, cuttings from a planter overhaul. Paper yard bags are the common form, taped shut or folded closed at the top.
Leaves and small branches in paper yard bags
Leaves rake up by the bag, with small branches sized to the bag riding along. Dry pine needles are the same work. What is already on the ground and bagged is what the pickup carries.
Bundled brush
Each bundle is tied with twine, short enough and light enough for one person to carry comfortably. The bundles stay in the yard beside the bags.
What is not yard waste hauling
Tree work is not on this page. The yard debris guide covers what counts as yard waste and what does not.
What decides the work
The pickup turns on the bag and bundle count, where the bags sit, the way through to the driveway with any gates or side yard between, whether the branches are bundled and light enough to carry, and whether the green bin is already full for the next City pickup.
| Yard waste | What decides the work | What to tell us when you phone |
|---|---|---|
| Grass clippings in paper bags | How many bags | A rough bag count |
| Hedge trimmings in paper bags | How full the bags are | Which bags are the heavy ones |
| Leaves in paper bags | Where the bags sit | How far from the driveway |
| Bundled small branches | Length of each bundle | How many bundles |
| Dry pine needles in paper bags | How many bags | Whether a side yard is between |
| Dried-out planter cuttings | Whether they are bagged | Where the bags are stacked |
Yard waste pickup against the green bin and brush pickup
When bagged yard waste pickup fits
A row of paper bags that has outgrown the green bin. A hedge trim that filled more bags than a weekly curbside pickup can hold. Bundled brush short enough to carry. A yard that is cleared along with a garage or with a whole house.
When the City's service fits better
LA Sanitation says food waste and green waste go in the green bin every week1 at every house the City serves; the green bin covers more. The City's brush pickup covers extra brush and trimmings once a year at no additional charge for the households LA Sanitation serves. Standing trees, stumps and long limbs are not on this list; every household job we do is listed on the service page.
The City's green bin and black bin rules say what goes where, and LA Sanitation sets those lines.
What goes in the green bin and the black bin
As LA Sanitation states it for the households it serves.
Green bin
- Food waste and green waste, every week
- Flowers, grass clippings, tree and bush trimmings, clean untreated wood
Black bin
- Plastic bags and pet waste
- Items labeled compostable or biodegradable
Source: LA Sanitation & Environment, Weekly Curbside Green Bin Collection (Organics).
What to have ready for the pickup
Have the bag and bundle count, where the bags sit, and the way through to the driveway with any gates or side yard between. Know what is inside the bags: clippings, leaves, trimmings, pine needles, planter cuttings.
Yard waste removal in a Los Angeles yard
A single-family home or a duplex gets three bins at the curb: a black 60-gallon trash can, a blue 90-gallon recycling bin and a green 90-gallon organics bin,2 and every household is required to take part in organics collection by placing food waste and green waste in the green bin every week.1
The green bin accepts flowers, grass clippings, tree and bush trimmings and clean untreated wood as yard trimmings, with plastic bags and pet waste belonging in the black bin.1 An extra free once-a-year collection of yard trimmings and brush3 runs for all households LA Sanitation serves, with each bundle tied and no longer than four feet or heavier than 30 pounds, scheduled through MyLA311 or the 24-hour Customer Care Center. A yard that sheds more than the green bin can hold on a given week is where the hauling run fits.
LA Sanitation says items labeled compostable or biodegradable often do not break down quickly enough in commercial composting facilities,1 so compostable utensils, bags and other biodegradable items go in the black bin rather than the green one.