How to responsibly dispose of garden waste

If you’ve neglected your garden over the past year and had to do a quick clean up when the sunshine arrived, you’ve probably got a ton of garden waste to deal with.

If you’re lucky enough to have a garden waste bag that the bin men regularly collect, this should be no issue – although there are quite a lot of restrictions as to what you can and can’t put in the bags. 

But, if you need a little more room than one green bag can offer, it’s best to contact the professionals and look for a roll-off container hire near you to dispose of garden waste responsibly.

Separate green waste and general waste

The first thing to do when disposing of garden waste is separate out different materials. Green waste is your typical garden materials like grass, twigs and leaves. This stuff is much easier to dispose of and can even be re-used around the garden.

General waste, on the other hand, is things like soil, stone, bigger branches and plastic. When hiring a waste disposal company, general waste is often more expensive to have removed than the green waste counterpart.

Composting

For those green thumbed individuals that love a bit of sustainability, composting is a great to turn your old garden waste into a nutrient-rich fertiliser for your plants.

Everything from leaves and grass trimmings to bark and old newspaper can be added to a compost bin, and after a few months, you’ll have yourself an endless supply of soil enricher.

Hire a skip

Skips are pretty helpful if you’re looking to do a full refurb of the garden or are planning on chopping down trees. Use this skip size guide by Able Skips to see what size skip you might need for the amount of waste you have.

Bigger skips are often a little cheaper per cubic yard, and if you finish off the garden, you could fill up the skip with clutter from the house too. Two birds with one stone, ey? It’s also worth mentioning that the size of skip you’ll be able to use will be dependent on how much space you have: Most councils won’t allow larger skips to be placed on the road, so you’ll need a driveway or garden to keep it.

Skip bags

Skip bags are a good alternative for those that don’t have the space or money for skip hire. They’re a great size for smaller garden projects or for storing heavy waste like stone, brick and soil. Skip bags will be collected by your waste company, so you’ll need to make sure you leave the bag somewhere that can be accessed by a truck or crane lorry – before filling it with heavy materials.

Bonfires

The final option for green waste would be to make your own firepit. That way, you can enjoy the outside even when it gets chilly while also getting rid of your waste. Weeds and green waste are great for burning as it produces much less smoke than store-bought firewood. Just be sure not to burn any previously treated wood, as this can release chemicals into the atmosphere.

And, if all else fails, a quick trip to the tip will work!