Christmas Tree Recycling 2027: Pickup Rules by City, 2026-27 Dates Not Yet Posted

None of the 10 city pages in our table had posted 2026-27 Christmas tree recycling dates on Nov. 4, 2026, but New York City, Charlotte and Austin already say trees go out at the curb on the regular collection day, according to each city’s own page.

New York City’s Department of Sanitation (DSNY) said in a Dec. 24, 2025 press release that residents may place naked trees at the curb on their “regular composting and recycling day.” The other cities run windows or drop-off sites, and none had posted 2026-27 dates. Christmas 2026 is Friday, Dec. 25, and Dec. 26 is a Saturday; see the December 2026 printable calendar for the week. For trash and recycling changes on the holiday itself, see our Christmas and New Year trash pickup guide.

Christmas tree pickup and drop-off by city

“2025-26” is last season’s window, taken from each city’s page. It does not predict 2026-27, and every 2026-27 cell says not yet posted unless a city said otherwise.

City	How a tree is taken	2025-26 season	2026-27	Source
New York City	Curbside on the “regular composting and recycling day”; “You do not need to make an appointment”	Press release dated Dec. 24, 2025 ended the special collection	Standing rule; Mulchfest dates not confirmed	DSNY, NYC311
Houston	Drop-off at “20 recycling locations across the city”; curbside not stated	Dec. 26, 2025 to Jan. 23, 2026	Not yet posted	City of Houston
Phoenix	Drop-off at 14 parks, live trees only	Dec. 26, 2025 to Jan. 9, 2026	Not yet posted	City of Phoenix
Philadelphia	Drop-off; trees left curbside “will be taken by the City as trash instead of being composted”	Jan. 5 to Jan. 17, 2026	Not yet posted	City of Philadelphia
San Diego	16 drop-off locations; the Organic Waste Curbside Green Bins “should be used” for trees	Dec. 26, 2025 to Jan. 16, 2026	Not yet posted	City of San Diego
Austin	Curbside on your composting collection day, set out by 5:30 a.m.	Page says “Starting December 26”	“2026 dates will be announced later in 2026”	City of Austin
Charlotte	Natural trees at the curb for yard waste collection on the regular collection day	No start date on the page	Not yet posted	City of Charlotte
San Francisco	Curbside next to the green composting bin on your regular composting day	Jan. 2 to Jan. 16, 2026	Not yet posted	SF Environment
Seattle	Curbside up to 2 undecorated trees or bundled greens; drop-off up to 3 trees per vehicle	Free through Jan. 31, 2026; extra yard waste fees from Feb. 1	Not yet posted	Seattle Public Utilities
Washington, D.C.	Curbside at the front of the residence; Department of Public Works (DPW) homes only	Jan. 2 to Feb. 28, 2026, then the normal point of collection	Not yet posted	DC DPW

Los Angeles, Chicago, San Jose and Indianapolis are not in the table because their pages were not reachable when we checked. San Antonio, Fort Worth and Columbus had no current official rule that we could find. Check the city’s own site for those.

The last-season dates sheet sorts these windows into two columns, “Starts (2025-26)” and “Ends (2025-26)”. Print it and mark your city’s 2026-27 dates on the January 2027 printable calendar once they appear.

What to remove before a Christmas tree goes out

Most pages ask for a bare tree, but the lists differ. Here is what each page says.

City	Remove or avoid	Other rules
New York City	“all stands, lights, ornaments, and tinsel”	“Do not put trees or wreaths in bags”
Houston	“all lights, ornaments, tinsel, wire, nails, and stands”	“not flocked, painted, or artificial”
Phoenix	Plastic artificial trees	“only for live items”
Philadelphia	All decorations	Trees “must be untied”
San Diego	“tree stands, bags, netting, lights, ornaments, tinsel”	“No artificial trees accepted”
Austin	“ornaments, decorations (including tinsel), lights and tree stands”	Flocked trees (artificial snow) not accepted
Charlotte	“decorations, including lights, ornaments and tinsel”	Artificial trees and all wreaths go to bulky item collection
San Francisco	Decorations and flocking	If your tree is more than 6 feet tall, cut it in half
Seattle	Decorations	Cut to 4-foot lengths or shorter
Washington, D.C.	“all ornaments and lights”	Do not put trees and greenery in a bag

Houston, Austin and San Francisco name flocking or fake snow on their pages, and Houston, Phoenix, San Diego and Charlotte turn away artificial trees. Because the rules differ, read your own city’s page rather than assuming another city’s rule.

How Christmas tree recycling worked in New York City, Houston and Philadelphia in 2025-26

New York City changed its rule last season. DSNY’s Dec. 24, 2025 release said the special Christmas tree collection is “no longer special,” and NYC311 now tells residents they do not need an appointment for a tree or wreath. We could not confirm Mulchfest dates for 2026-27, so none are listed.

Houston’s season ran from Friday, Dec. 26, 2025 through Friday, Jan. 23, 2026 at 20 recycling locations, and Phoenix’s from Dec. 26, 2025 through Jan. 9, 2026 at 14 parks. Philadelphia’s drop-off ran Monday, Jan. 5 through Saturday, Jan. 17, 2026. If a Philadelphia tree stays at the curb, the city takes it as trash, which means it is not composted.

Where do Seattle, San Francisco and Washington, D.C. set their dates?

Their pages gave last season’s windows. San Francisco listed “between January 2 and January 16, 2026,” Washington, D.C. said DPW “will begin holiday tree collection from January 2 through February 28, 2026,” and Seattle Public Utilities said residents could compost trees and other holiday greens for free through Jan. 31, with extra yard waste fees from Feb. 1. All of these are 2025-26 dates; none of the three cities had posted 2026-27 dates on Nov. 4, 2026.

Check your city’s page again after Christmas before you set out a tree.