The packages have been opened, holiday meals have been consumed, and the mountains of accumulated trash has been deposited in the refuse bin. While many people will leave Christmas decorations up through January 6 (the 12th day of Christmas) others take the opportunity to put away the holiday decorations and be ready to celebrate the turning of the calendar to a new year.
The City of Muscatine will once again assist Muscatine and Fruitland residents in recycling their live Christmas trees with curbside collection starting on January 6, 2025. The curbside collection is part of the yard waste collection service provided by the Solid Waste Division.
There are many types of Christmas trees including live, flocked, and artificial. Flocked trees are live trees that have been coated with a white, snow-like spray. Each type of tree has different disposal options, so please take a moment to determine how to properly dispose of your tree.
Unflocked live trees will be collected by the Solid Waste Division on the resident’s refuse collection day starting on Monday, January 6, 2025, and continuing through Friday, January 31, 2025. The trees must be placed next to the curb for collection.
To prepare unflocked live trees for curbside collection, remove all ornaments, wires, and decorations from the tree along with any stand or other metal objects. Do not place the tree in a plastic bag. Trees taller than five feet should be cut into two sections.
Flocked and artificial trees, along with wreaths, are considered garbage items and cannot be recycled. These items can be taken to the Muscatine Transfer Station for disposal or residents can contact the Transfer Station to schedule a curbside pickup.
For more information on recycling Christmas trees or how to prepare the live tree for collection, contact the Transfer Station at (563) 263-9689.