Auburn, AL Landscaping Rules: Composting (2026)

The City of Auburn collects yard waste curbside on the same day as garbage. Residents place yard waste in one pile, set out either the evening before or no later than 6 a.m. on the collection day. Bagging grass clippings and leaves is optional but recommended ("customers are not required to bag grass clippings, nor leaves but it is suggested as the wind may scatter the debris"). Size and volume limits apply: limbs must be no more than five feet in length and less than four inches in diameter, and each residence is limited to 5 cubic yards (about 6 ft x 6 ft x 4 ft) of material per week. Yard waste should be placed within three feet of the roadway but not in the street, in front of your own residence and not on medians or neighboring properties. The City grinds collected woody debris into mulch, sometimes used for landscape construction or as permitted landfill cover. Auburn does not publish an ordinance requiring residents to compost, nor one prohibiting backyard composting; home composting of leaves and grass is treated as an encouraged, voluntary alternative, and Alabama Cooperative Extension provides backyard-composting guidance. Residents who compost should keep piles tidy to avoid creating a vegetation or vermin nuisance under the property-maintenance code. Confirm current set-out rules and limits with Environmental Services before large clean-ups.