Yard cleanup in St. Louis: Hiring and Disposal

Define the job before comparing quotes

Send photos of the lawn, planting beds, fence edges and debris piles. Tell the contractor which areas you want cleared and which plants or leaf-covered beds you want left alone. Specify leaf gathering, loose-twig collection, hand weeding or cutting back overgrowth as separate tasks. Ask the crew to flag work outside the agreed scope before starting it.

Describe access as well as yard size. Include the gate opening, steps, available parking and the route from the backyard to the loading area. Point out irrigation equipment, ornaments and plants you want protected. Ask whether the contractor needs you present to unlock a gate or approve the finished work.

Request separate prices for cleanup labor, bags, loading, hauling and disposal. Ask whether the quote covers a fixed scope or hourly work, and how you will approve extra work. The supplied City sources establish disposal options but do not establish contractor cleanup prices. Use written quotes for your property rather than treating a general price range as a local estimate. [1] [2] [3] [4]

Match leaf gathering to the right City service

For seasonal street leaf removal, the City instructs residents to check street-cleaning signs or the street-cleaning area schedule. Its service runs on scheduled sweeping days from the first Monday in November through December 31. The monthly refuse fee includes leaf removal. Ask your contractor to follow the preparation instructions for the route you choose. [1]

The street-sweeper instructions call for leaves and normal street-cleaning debris about a foot and a half from the curb on scheduled cleaning days. Residents must remove limbs, cardboard and plastic bags from those piles. Do not have a crew leave a mixed cleanup pile there. For bagged leaves, the City instructs residents to use paper yard-waste bags, place them in the tree-lawn and request pickup through the Citizens' Service Bureau at 314-622-4800. [1]

For regular yard-waste service, residents with alley collection use dumpsters marked YARD WASTE ONLY. Residents with roll carts receive green-cart yard-waste collection on Wednesday, with holiday and winter exceptions. The City stops regular collection the first week in December and resumes in early to mid March. Confirm any specific seasonal dates before booking work that depends on that service. [2]

Confirm hauling and woody-debris acceptance

The City's resident compost program uses St. Louis Composting at 560 Terminal Row. Its compost drop-off page lists the first Saturday of each month, moving to the second Saturday when a holiday falls on the first. Residents must bring identity and residency documents; the program excludes commercial vehicles. Call 314-486-0185 to confirm the date and arrival hours before planning a self-haul trip. [3]

Check the material list before choosing that program. The compost drop-off page accepts grass clippings, leaves, brush, garden plants and twigs less than two inches in diameter. It excludes tree limbs, logs, stumps, sod, dirt and stones, among other materials. Keep these categories separate when photographing debris for a quote. [3]

A separate City residential yard-waste page describes one pickup-truck load and lists logs, branches, brush, leaves and grass clippings. It describes a no-fee residential drop-off on designated dates and load-based fees at other times. Because the two pages differ on woody materials, call the facility with your material type, load size and vehicle details. Ask which program applies and whether you will pay a fee. [3] [4]

For contractor hauling, request the destination and disposal charge in writing. Do not assume the crew can use your resident benefit. Ask whether the crew will provide a disposal receipt and whether its quote includes a return trip if the facility refuses part of the load. [3]

Schedule the work and agree on completion

Agree on a weather rescheduling policy and the deadline for placing debris for collection. The National Weather Service's St. Louis climate normals show measurable precipitation on an average of 8.5 days in October, 9.0 in November and 9.0 in December during 1991–2020. These historical averages support leaving scheduling flexibility; they do not predict rain on your appointment date. [5]

Choose a finish you can inspect: agreed areas cleared, protected plants undisturbed, walkways swept and debris placed at the agreed collection point or hauled away. Ask for completion photos if you will be absent. Before accepting the job, check that the crew handled the disposal step you purchased and identify any areas that need another pass.

St. Louis fall and early-winter wet days

Choose the cleanup and disposal arrangement

Your hiring checklist

1. Photograph each work area and separate leaves, woody debris and other waste in your job description.
2. List the plants, beds and objects the crew should protect or leave alone.
3. Provide gate, step, parking and loading-access details.
4. Choose gathering for collection, self-hauling or contractor hauling before comparing quotes.
5. Ask for an itemized scope, disposal destination and approval process for extra charges.
6. Confirm the pickup or drop-off arrangements described above before the crew arrives.
7. Agree on weather rescheduling, completion photos and a final walkthrough.

Frequently Asked Questions

Should I pay for leaf hauling if the City offers pickup?

Ask for both a gathering-only quote and a quote with hauling. City leaf removal runs on scheduled sweeping days from the first Monday in November through December 31, and residents can request paper-bag pickup. Choose hauling if you want removal as part of the contractor's completed job. [1]

Can a cleanup contractor use the free Terminal Row program?

Do not assume so. The City's free resident compost program excludes commercial vehicles. Ask the contractor to name its disposal destination and include any charge in the quote. [3]

Can I leave branches with leaves for the street sweeper?

The City instructs residents to remove limbs from street leaf piles. Its yard-waste guidance allows residents to bundle limbs in six-foot lengths for monthly bulk pickup. Confirm that route before asking a crew to prepare branches for collection. [1] [2]

Do these collection rules apply to St. Louis County homes?

These sources describe City of St. Louis services and resident programs. For a home outside City limits, confirm collection, accepted materials and drop-off eligibility with your municipality or waste hauler before arranging cleanup. [1] [2] [3]