City of Saratoga Springs residents can leave loose piles of leaves and lawn debris at the curb from October 1 through December. If yard cleanup is on your weekend list, you can skip the paper bags during that fall collection period.
Before raking everything out, check your numbered zone on the city’s 2026 map. The schedule is for properties within the City of Saratoga Springs, not all of Saratoga County.
What belongs at the curb
Leaves must be brought to the curb. Crews will not come onto private property to collect them or finish the cleanup. Small branches can go out in bundles, with each branch no longer than four feet. Keep bundles and any containers light enough for one person to lift.
Absolutely no plastic. The city takes this material to its compost station, where it is recycled for spring compost sales. The full preparation rules are on the city’s leaf pickup page.
Check the number as well as the color
The 2026 collection map divides the city among four street crews, then marks the pickup zones within those areas. The DPW announcement assigns these weekdays:
- Zone 1, red: Monday or Tuesday.
- Zone 2, blue: Tuesday or Wednesday.
- Zone 3, yellow: Wednesday or Thursday.
- Zone 4, green: Thursday or Friday.
Look up your street on the map; being on the east or west side alone does not identify its zone. If the boundary is unclear, ask DPW Dispatch at 518-584-3356.
There is a timing wrinkle: the city’s general leaf page also describes a roughly two-week route, weather permitting. Use the weekday zones to plan your cleanup, but confirm a particular pickup with Dispatch rather than counting on a truck that day.
Some leaves can stay
For leaves you would rather keep on the lawn, New York’s Department of Environmental Conservation suggests mowing them into smaller pieces throughout the fall. Its guidance calls for no more than a one-inch layer of mulch. With a side-discharge mower, start at the outside edge and direct the leaves toward the center so they are cut again on subsequent passes.
Official guidance and collection map checked October 10, 2026. Featured image: AI-generated editorial illustration.
