How to recycle your holiday tree in Austin

Austinites can recycle their natural Christmas trees starting on Dec. 26 through curbside pickup or by dropping them off at Zilker Park.

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- If you're not sure what to do with your tree once the holidays are over, recycling is an option.

Austinites can recycle their natural Christmas trees starting on Dec. 26 through curbside pickup or by dropping them off at Zilker Park.

Annually, holiday tree recycling keeps nearly 20,000 trees out of area landfills, according to a press release from the City of Austin. Recycling trees each year helps the city work toward its goal of reaching zero waste by 2040.

City of Austin curbside customers can recycle their trees by setting it at the curb by 5:30 a.m. on their regularly scheduled compost collection day. All trees for curbside collection that are six feet or taller must be cut in half.

Another option is to drop trees off at the Zilker Park Polo Fields between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. on the following days:

• Saturday, December 31, 2022
• Saturday, January 7, 2023
• Sunday, January 8, 2023

The following tree recycling guidelines must be followed for both curbside and Zilker Park recycling:

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

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.

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