MURFREESBORO, Tenn. – It is that time of year again—cooler nights, football, pumpkin spice, and leaves begin to change color and fall.

The 2022 Fall Leaf Collection season begins October 1 and continues through December 31, 2022. During this peak season, Oct. 1-Jan. 31, loose leaves can be piled curbside free of charge. Residents can start making plans for raking leaves and sprucing up the yard.

The Public Works Department, consisting of the Murfreesboro Street and Solid Waste departments, will team-up with a combined system to improve service and efficiencies for the City and its customers.

“As we have for years now, the goal is to cover the City twice as fast. As previous, the City will be divided in half by U.S. Highway 41 (Broad Street) with the Street Department serving residents on the north and east side of Broad and the Solid Waste Department servicing the south and west side,” said Public Works Division Executive Director Raymond Hillis.

The Street Department will operate with five Vacuum trucks and a dozen or more crew members. The Solid Waste Department will operate seven Boom trucks with a driver and a crewmember raking leaves.

“City residents are asked to place loose leaves within five to 10 feet of the street so leaf vacuums can reach them easily,” said Murfreesboro Solid Waste Director Russell Gossett.

Under the Solid Waste Ordinance reflecting Best Practices, yard trimmings for curbside pick-up should be placed in biodegradable paper bags available at your local grocery or hardware store. However, during peak leaf disposal, Oct. 1-Jan. 31, loose leaves and grass clippings can be piled curbside free of charge, but should not cover or clog storm sewers. This improper placement can hamper the system’s ability to convey storm water as well as adversely affect water quality in our streams and rivers.

To make the annual leaf collection process go smoothly, residents should follow simple guidelines to improve service and efficiencies for City crews and customers:  

• DO NOT combine large tree limbs and leaves; place leaves in separate piles parallel to the street.
• DO NOT place yard trimmings and leaf collection in ditches around or on top of structures such as mailboxes, fences, meter lids, utility lines, utility poles, etc.
• DO NOT place foreign debris such as lumber, household trash, and other types of debris in your leaf pile. It will not be picked up if found.
• DO NOT set clippings or leaves in vacant lots or on vacant properties. This is illegal dumping
• DO NOT place loose leaves under low-lying power lines and cable lines to allow room for the boom to work.
• DO NOT park a vehicle near the leaf pile during daylight hours.

Only biodegradable paper bags are accepted for those residents who choose to bag their leaves. Residents are also asked to keep loose leaves separate from yard waste, including brush, debris, and limbs, because mixing them causes damage to the vacuum units and slows vacuum collection. Collected leaves are trucked to Murfreesboro’s mulch site at 4765 Florence Rd.

The heaviest part of the leaf collection season typically ends before the Christmas holiday. Crews will continue picking up leaves through the first or second week of January 2023.

Murfreesboro Citizens who prefer to remove their own grass clippings, limbs and brush rather than leave it curbside can utilize the Yard Waste Collection & Mulching Facility located at 4735 Florence Road, Murfreesboro, 37129.  The Yard Waste Collection Facility is normally open for yard waste drop off Monday through Friday from 6:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.

For more information on the Fall Leaf Collection program, contact Solid Waste Director Russell Gossett at 615-893-3681 or rgossett@murfreesborotn.gov or Public Works Division Executive Director Raymond Hillis at 615-893-4380 or rhillis@murfreesborotn.gov.

Effective August 1, 2021, a Revised Solid Waste Ordinance adopted new best practices with changes to grass clippings pickup, bulk items, and collection fees with customer reminders and new fees. The latest version is available at https://www.murfreesborotn.gov/1545/Garbage-Collection-Procedures

For more information on City of Murfreesboro Solid Waste, visit https://www.murfreesborotn.gov/solidwaste.