This week, City of Knoxville Public Service Department crews will begin collecting leaves—approximately 6,500 tons of them from residents’ yards between now and February 2022. 

As days get shorter and temperatures drop, leaves outpace other yard waste created by Knoxville residents. Crews will collect leaves on a monthly basis, while brush will be collected periodically throughout the winter.

Residents who want their leaves picked up by City crews should follow these tips to make leaf collection as smooth as possible:

• Leave leaves loose, not bagged. 

• Rake leaves into piles or rows at the edge of your property along the street away from mailboxes, sidewalks and vehicles. 

• Separate leaf piles from brush piles and any bulky waste items waiting at the curb with your garbage cart. 


Public Service crews deliver the leaves to Living Earth, for mulching and composting with other organic material into various yard products that the company markets and sells. Living Earth has operations in Knoxville and Nashville as well as in Texas.

Living Earth also provides the City with up to 1,000 cubic yards of hardwood mulch and 200 cubic yards of playground mulch annually that City horticulture crews use to landscape beds and parks. 

Questions about leaf collection? Want to find out when a crew will be collecting leaves next in your neighborhood? Call 3-1-1 or 865-215-4311 or use the My Knoxville app for iPhone and Android devices. You can also visit KnoxvilleTN.gov/leafpickup.