|
Why separate yard waste from my trash?
Yard waste is the single largest waste component that comes from our homes. Yard waste is not garbage, yet it makes up about 18% of the waste that is sent to a landfill – taking up valuable space in the landfill and costing Lexington residents millions of dollars in landfill fees. The good news is that yard waste can be composted into a beneficial product that can be reused to improve our lawns and gardens. City ordinance prohibits yard waste from being in the Herbie garbage cart.
How does yard waste collection work?
The Division of Waste Management provides separate yard waste collection to all residents that receive LFUCG household waste and recycling collection service. Yard waste will be picked up once a week -- on the same day that Rosie recycling and Herbie landfill-waste carts are collected.
Yard waste can be put in either the gray Lenny cart, paper yard waste bags (obtained free with coupons from the city) or a personal plastic or metal can with a lid, not to exceed 30 pounds and marked “Yard Waste Only.”
Should I put grass in my Lenny?
Leaving grass clippings on your lawn either by using a mulching lawnmower or taking the clippings from the lawnmower bag and sprinkling them around trees and shrubs are ways to recycle yard waste. It is better to leave clippings on the lawn than to put grass in the Lenny. Follow these tips:
-
A sharp mower blade will create finer clippings that will decompose quickly.
-
Mow your grass when it is dry and 3" to 4" tall.
-
Never cut grass too short. If you keep your grass at its optimum height, your grass will have a deeper root system, which will help protect your lawn against drought and weeds.
-
Most nitrogen fertilizer should be applied during the fall. Apply little or no fertilizer during the spring and summer.
-
Water your lawn only during summer droughts.
The "rule of thumb" for mowing home lawns is not to remove more than one-third of the leaf blade at any one time. If you use the following mowing schedule, you will no longer need to bag your grass clippings:
| Type of Grass |
Mower
Blade Height |
Mow Before
REACHING |
| Kentucky Bluegrass |
2-2 1/2" |
3-3 1/2" |
| Fine fescue |
2-2 1/2" |
3-3 1/2" |
| Perennial Ryegrass |
2-2 1/2" |
3-3 1/2" |
| Tall fescue |
2 1/2-3" |
3 1/2-4" |
| Zoysiagrass |
1" |
2" |
|
|
The Lenny Cart:
If you do not have a Lenny cart, please request one
by calling LexCall at 311 or e-mail angeliak@lexingtonky.gov with your name, daytime phone number, and address including zip code. The Lenny cart is a 95-gallon gray cart used only for yard waste. No trash, recycling or anything other than yard waste may be placed in the gray Lenny cart.
Your Lenny cart should be placed on the curb with your Rosie and Herbie carts on your regular collection day.
How should I prepare my yard waste for collection?
Do not put household waste in your Lenny cart. This contaminates the yard waste.
You may use your own personal plastic or metal cans. Such cans must be marked "yard waste only" and cannot exceed 30 gallons in capacity. They must also have lids.
Do not use plastic bags. Yard waste should be placed loose inside the Lenny or in paper yard waste bags.
Limbs cannot be longer than 4 feet in length and 6 inches in diameter. If the limbs won’t fit in the Lenny cart, they must be tied and bundled with twine and placed on the curb.
Do not use tape, wire, or plastic ties.
Paper yard waste bags:
If you receive city waste collection service, you also receive our spring, fall, and holiday newsletters. The spring and fall newsletters contain yard waste bag coupons that can be redeemed at many discount, hardware, and grocery stores throughout Lexington.
Composting:
You can compost in your own yard, by turning yard waste and kitchen scraps into a soil nutrient for their own lawns. LEARN MORE.
|