Chapel Hill stopped picking up loose leaf piles last fall. Raleigh ends curbside leaf collection this fall. Durham cut its pickup frequency in half in 2025.

If you live in the Triangle, the town is no longer coming to get your leaves. That is a lot of oak, sweetgum, and tulip poplar landing in your yard with nowhere to go.

Brown's Arbor Care will haul them for you.

What Changed and Where

Chapel Hill

The Town of Chapel Hill voted in September 2025 to end loose curbside leaf collection entirely. Leaves now need to go into containers to be picked up. Starting July 1, 2026, the town only accepts leaves in official Town yard carts. Large piles can still be collected by the town for $125 per truckload on request.

Many residents were caught off guard. Chapel Hill has one of the densest tree canopies in the Triangle. In a normal fall, some yards generate more leaves than several yard carts can hold.

Raleigh

Raleigh ran its loose leaf vacuum program for the last time during the Fall 2025 through Winter 2026 season. Starting this fall, loose leaf collection ends. Residents will need to bag leaves in biodegradable bags or use yard waste carts for weekly pickup.

The city estimates the change saves $675,000 per year. For residents with large lots and mature hardwoods, it shifts a significant amount of work onto them.

Durham

Durham still collects yard waste but cut pickup from weekly to biweekly starting August 2025. Leaves pile up faster than a biweekly schedule can handle during peak fall weeks in November and December.

Carrboro and Burlington

Carrboro still collects loose leaves twice a month year-round. Burlington still runs a scheduled zone pickup program. No changes announced in either town as of spring 2026.

What You Can Do With Your Leaves

You have a few real options.

Leave them. This is the best choice for most yards. Leaves break down into free mulch and feed your soil. They shelter fireflies, box turtles, native bees, and dozens of other species through winter. Chapel Hill, Hillsborough, and Carrboro have all joined a regional "Leave Your Leaves" campaign for exactly this reason. We have a full post on the wildlife case for leaving leaves if you want to read more.

Mow them in. A mulching mower chops leaves into fine pieces that disappear into the lawn within a few weeks. This works well for moderate leaf volumes on grass. It adds organic matter and feeds soil microbes.

Move them to garden beds. Rake leaves under shrubs, around tree bases, and into garden beds. Two to three inches of leaf mulch holds moisture, suppresses weeds, and insulates roots through winter cold snaps.

Have us haul them. Some yards generate more leaves than any of the above can handle. Corner lots, properties with large oaks or sweetgums, yards without much planting bed space. If you need them gone, we will come and get them.

Our Leaf Hauling Service

We offer leaf pickup in Chapel Hill, Carrboro, Hillsborough, Durham, Mebane, and Burlington. We are already running crews in these areas for tree work throughout fall and winter, so leaf pickups fit naturally into our schedule.

We ask that leaves be raked or blown into piles before we arrive. We do not use plastic bags. Paper yard bags or loose piles work best.

Leaves we collect go to compost rather than a landfill. If you are interested in finished compost for spring, ask us when you book.

This service runs from October through January. Contact us before October to get on the schedule. Fall slots fill fast, especially in Chapel Hill and Durham where municipal options are now limited.

One More Thing Worth Knowing

If you have a tree job scheduled this fall, ask us about combining the leaf pickup with that visit. We are already on your property with a truck. It saves a separate trip and often reduces the total cost.

The same goes for post-storm cleanups. After a major wind or ice event, leaves, branches, and debris all need to move at once. We handle all of it.

Book a Leaf Pickup

Brown's Arbor Care serves Chapel Hill, Carrboro, Hillsborough, Durham, Mebane, Burlington, and surrounding areas in Orange, Alamance, Chatham, and Person counties.

Leaf Hauling in Chapel Hill, Durham and the Triangle