Collection & reattachment schedule, 2026-27 cycle

Maple Hollow is divided into six collection zones. Your zone determines the week your bags go to the curb in fall and the window your tree is dressed in spring. Zones are worked in order. The order does not change, including for residents who call to ask that it change.

Find your zone by street

Zone schedule, 2026-27 cycle. Adopted by the Leaf Board, June 4, 2026.
Zone	Area	Registered trees	Fall collection	Spring reattachment	Status

Curbside rules

Labeled paper leaf bags at the curb on a Maple Hollow street in autumn — Correctly tagged bags on Russet Lane. Tags face the street.

Approved paper bags only. Plastic bags suffocate the leaves and will be left at the curb with an orange sticker explaining why, at length.
One parcel number per bag. Each bag must carry a Department tag with your tree's parcel number (format MH-0000). Mixed-parcel bags are sorted to the slower line and you will feel it in spring.
Bags out by 7:00 AM Monday of your collection week. Crews make one pass. There is no second pass. There has never been a second pass.
Your leaves only. Do not rake a neighbor's leaves into your bags, even as a favor. Cross-parcel bagging is the leading cause of misattachment and the second leading cause of disputes at town meeting.
Dry leaves sort faster. If rain is forecast, cover the pile or hold the bags in the garage. Wet oak takes four times longer on the line, which is one reason the oak backlog exists. It is not the main reason. See the annual report.
No needles. Evergreens are exempt under Ordinance 14-2. Needles found in bags are removed, counted, and noted in your parcel file.

What happens to your leaves over winter

Staff sorting leaves by species at the Municipal Sorting Facility — The sorting line: species, then size, then sun exposure.

Climate-controlled storage bays holding sorted leaves over winter — Bay 7, holding Zone 4 maple at 41 degrees Fahrenheit.

Sorted leaves winter in eleven climate-controlled bays at 41 degrees Fahrenheit and 55 percent relative humidity, filed by parcel number. Bay assignments are audited twice, in December and February. The February audit exists because of the December audit.

Spring reattachment: what to expect

A gloved technician applying Town Specification TA-6 adhesive to a single maple leaf stem — A certified technician applies TA-6 adhesive to a petiole.

Crews post a yellow door hanger 48 hours before work begins on your parcel.
Keep vehicles out of the drip line during your reattachment window. The bucket truck needs the whole curb and part of the lawn.
Reattachment is trunk-outward, lower limbs first. Crown-first service is available for a surcharge (fee code LR-D) and the Department's opinion of it is on file.
A completed tree receives a green completion tag at the base. Do not remove the tag until Memorial Day.
Adhesive Specification TA-6 is rated for one full season, squirrel-safe, and reviewed annually by the Leaf Board. Leaves release naturally in October, as designed.