Leaf Drop-Off Program

Leaf Drop-Off Program

When fall approaches, we begin to see colorful leaves decorating the trees of our community.  In time, however, those leaves begin to fall, and begin to pile up in our yards.  To assist the residents of Sikeston with the abundance of leaves that some of you may have, the City of Sikeston wants to offer some options to address leaves:  

                                             Leaf Collection 2023 Flyer
To accommodate residents, the Yard Waste Collection Site will be open by appointment only Monday thru Friday 7:30 AM - 3:30 PM starting November 6 through December 21 (except holidays).

  • Mulch the leaves in your yard.  This is probably the simplest, and some would argue the healthiest option for your lawn.  Many mowers now have options to mulch rather than blow a stream of cut grass and leaves to the side.  Mulching your leaves in your yard provides compost for your lawn, and helps manage and reduce the space that leaves take up in your yard.  
  • Burn the leaves in your yard.  Those who decide to burn leaves need to call attention to the city ordinance that outlines how this must be done.  Some of the important points of the city ordinance to remember include:
    • Do not burn anything when the wind is over 10 mph
    • You may not burn limbs over 2 inches in diameter
    • You cannot burn any yard debris on any sidewalk, street, alleyway, gutter, drainage ditch or storm drain.
    • You must be present while burning, and have a water source available.
    • You cannot place debris of any kind on any sidewalk, street, alleyway, gutter, drainage ditch or storm drain.  This would include dirt, mulch, grass clippings, leaves, limbs, straw, paper or ashes.
    • Some neighborhoods may have restrictive covenants against burning, so please check your restrictive covenants to see if this applies to your neighborhood.  
  • Deliver leaves and compost to the City Compost Site.  The City operates a compost site located on Compress Road approximately 1 block west of Northwest Street.  The city compost site is a location that residents can take leaves, grass clippings, bushes and tree limbs.  The compost site is typically open twice each month with extended hours during leaf season.  A schedule of the compost site open dates can be found at:  http://www.sikeston.org/departments/public_works/compost_site.php.   

Commercial Lawn Contractors will be allowed to bring leaves to the compost site during the extended hours between November 16th and December 19th.  Contractors will need to show proof of a business license, and will need to provide the address(es) where the leaves were collected.  Contractors will be limited to bringing leaves and small sticks.  Limbs and trees will not be allowed to be dumped by commercial contractors. 

We wish everyone a happy fall, and hope that these modifications will accommodate most residents as we address the falling leaves.  Should you ever have questions or comments, feel free to send them to publicworks@sikeston.org.