Give your Christmas Tree the gift of another life out of the landfill. Recycle curbside or at Zilker Park.

AUSTIN, TEXAS – Once our natural Christmas trees have been taken down and stripped of their decorations; they have a new purpose! City of Austin residents can give their real trees a second life by recycling them into mulch or compost.

Annually, holiday tree recycling keeps nearly 20,000 trees out of area landfills, contributing to the City’s goal of reaching zero waste by 2040.

For City of Austin curbside customers, recycling a holiday tree is as easy as setting it on the curb. Beginning December 26, 2021, Austin Resource Recovery will pick up all-natural trees, along with yard trimmings, on regularly scheduled collection days.

All trees for curbside collection that are six feet or taller must be cut in half. Please set your tree at the curb by 6:30 a.m.

All residents, including those without City of Austin curbside service, can do a contactless drop-off of their trees at the Zilker Park Polo Fields between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. on the following days:

• Sunday, January 2, 2022
• Saturday, January 8, 2022
• Sunday, January 9, 2022

Residents should use the following guidelines when recycling their trees:

• Trees sprayed with flocking, or artificial snow are not accepted
• Remove all ornaments, tinsel, decorations, lights, and the tree stand
• Do not place trees in plastic bags
• Only natural trees may be recycled

For a list of alternative drop-off locations provided by Travis County or businesses that take natural trees, visit austintexas.gov/treerecycling.

Trees collected at Zilker Park will be turned into mulch and available for free on a first-come, first-served basis beginning January 12 at 9 a.m. (date and time subject to change due to weather).