Oshawa Yard Waste and Leaf Collection: A Fall Guide

Oshawa picks up leaves and yard waste every other week, on your garbage day, from mid-April until early December. Use kraft paper bags or a clearly marked open-top container. Keep each one under 20 kg (44 lb). Set it out after 6 p.m. the night before and by 7 a.m. on pickup day. Plastic bags and grass clippings stay at the curb.

When is yard waste pickup in Oshawa?

Yard waste goes out every other week. It's always on the same day as your garbage. The season runs from mid-April until early December.

So you don't get a separate leaf day. Your street's yard waste week is set by your address. The City no longer mails a paper calendar, so you need to look it up yourself.

Here's where to check:

• The Durham Region Waste App. It shows your schedule, and you can set reminders in it.
• The schedule lookup on the City's Collection Schedule page.
• The app's Know Before You Throw tool, if you're not sure where something goes.

Turn on the app reminders now. With a pickup only every two weeks, missing one in late fall means a month of bags in the garage.

Is there yard waste pickup on Thanksgiving?

No. Thanksgiving is Monday, October 12 this year, and Oshawa doesn't collect on it.

The holiday pushes the whole week back. A Monday pickup moves to Tuesday. Tuesday moves to Wednesday, and so on for the rest of the week.

The same rule covers every other stat holiday in the season, like Victoria Day and Labour Day.

What time do you put yard waste out in Oshawa?

Put it out no earlier than 6 p.m. the night before. Have it at the curb by 7 a.m. on pickup day.

Where you put it matters too. Set your bags at ground level, within 30 cm (1 ft) of the curb. Keep them in plain view. A parked car in front of your bags can mean the truck drives past.

Spring and fall are the busiest times. The City warns that yard waste pickup can run up to two business days late. If your bags are still there at supper, leave them out for another day or two before you call Service Oshawa.

What bags and containers does Oshawa take?

You have two choices:

• Kraft paper yard waste bags
• A reusable open-top container that's clearly labelled as yard waste

Plastic bags won't be collected. If your leaves are in plastic, they stay put.

A labelled can is handy in wet weather, since paper bags go soft in the rain. Our post on yard waste bags vs bins covers the trade offs.

How heavy can a yard waste bag be in Oshawa?

Each bag or container must weigh less than 20 kg (44 lb). An overweight bag is one of the City's listed reasons for a missed pickup.

Dry leaves are light. Wet ones are not. October rain can turn a full paper bag into a heavy, soggy brick. Try these:

• Rake on dry days when you can.
• Fill wet bags only about three quarters full.
• Keep full bags in the garage or under a tarp until pickup night.
• Lift each bag before it goes out. If it's a strain, split it.

How do you put out branches and hedge trimmings?

Tie twigs and brush into bundles. Each bundle can be up to 1.2 m (4 ft) long and must weigh under 20 kg (44 lb). No single branch can be more than 10 cm (4 inches) across.

Tree stumps, trunks and large branches are not yard waste. Neither is lumber.

This is handy if you give your cedars one last tidy before winter. Our guide on when to trim cedar hedges covers the timing. Or hand it off with our hedge trimming service.

What counts as yard waste in Oshawa?

Goes out on yard waste day

• Leaves and brush
• Garden trimmings, weeds and plants
• Corn stalks
• Fallen fruit from your trees
• Pine needles and cones
• Pumpkins and gourds, on the first yard waste day after Halloween

Not yard waste

• Grass clippings
• Soil, sod, stones and clay
• Hay and straw bales
• Plastic flowers and plant pots
• Anything in a plastic bag

See weeds or a sick patch of lawn while you rake? Our partner crews don't spray, and we don't give chemical advice.

What do you do with grass clippings in Oshawa?

Leave them on the lawn. The City won't take clippings at the curb because they cause problems at the compost facility. It says leaving them saves time and helps your lawn.

That works best when you mow often. Durham Region's advice is to cut to 6 to 8 cm (2.5 to 3 inches) and never take off more than one-third of the blade at once. Short clippings sink in and break down fast. Our post on grasscycling explains how.

Can you drop off leaves at the Durham waste site?

Not anymore. Durham Region says its waste management facilities, including the one on Ritson Road North in Oshawa, no longer accept leaf and yard waste. It points you to the free curbside pickup instead.

That makes your pickup weeks the main way out. If leaves keep coming down after the last pickup in early December, you have two choices:

• Store the bags somewhere dry until pickup starts again in mid-April.
• Mulch them into the lawn or add them to a backyard composter.

Can you rake leaves into the street in Oshawa?

No. The City says not to rake or blow leaves or yard waste onto the road. Leaves plug catch basins, which can cause flooding. They also make roads slippery. The City enforces this.

The same goes for your leaf blower. Blow toward the lawn or a tarp, never toward the gutter.

Do you have to rake every leaf?

No. The City's own pollinator tip is to leave some leaves, seed heads and dry stems in your garden beds over winter. Bugs shelter in them. It also suggests holding your spring garden cleanup until late spring or early summer.

The lawn is different. A thick, wet mat of leaves can smother grass over winter. A thin layer can be mulched with the mower. Our post on mulching leaves with a lawn mower shows when each one works.

Here's a bonus for bagging the rest. Each spring, Durham Region gives free compost to residents. It's a thank you for keeping leaves and yard waste out of the garbage.

Should you keep mowing in October in Oshawa?

Yes, while the grass still grows. Near the lake, Oshawa's average first fall frost comes around October 14. Grass slows after that, but it doesn't stop on the spot.

The City's Lot Maintenance By-law still applies too. Grass can't grow taller than 20 cm (8 inches), on your lot or the boulevard you look after. Our post on the Oshawa long grass by-law covers the details. For soil and neighbourhood notes, see our Oshawa lawn care page.

A short last cut helps with leaves, too. They sit on top of short grass, so they rake and mulch faster.

Can a crew handle your Oshawa fall cleanup?

Yes. Golden Oak Lawn Care matches you with a vetted, insured local crew in Oshawa. They do the work. We stand behind it with the Golden Oak Guarantee.

Your crew can rake and bag leaves in paper for a fall cleanup, keeping each bag under 20 kg. They can tie brush into bundles the City will take. Ask how they handle haul away if you'd rather not wait for your pickup week.

We measure your yard from satellite images, so no one needs to visit. A cleanup price depends on lawn size, leaf volume, gates, slopes, hedges and haul away. Your price comes by text in 60 minutes. You keep the same crew every visit, with a photo after every cut. Book the season through the Worry-Free Lawn Season and your first cut is free.

Want it handled? Get your price in 60 minutes, or call 1-866-904-LAWN.

Oshawa Yard Waste Questions

Rules change, so check with the City before you plan. Sources: Oshawa yard waste, waste tips, holiday collection, collection schedule, Durham waste management facilities, Durham water efficiency, weeds, plants and lawns, By-law 127-2007, Oshawa climate normals.