Yard Waste Pickup in Pearland: What's Free, and What Actually Costs You
Published August 3, 2026 · By Daw's Junk Solutions
Most of what lands in a Pearland or Houston yard can go out free, curbside, on the city's own truck. That is true and it is worth knowing before you call anybody, including us.
What junk removal pages usually leave out is where that free program stops. It has a volume cap, a bagging and bundling rule, a list of things it will not take at all, and a fixed schedule that does not bend for a weekend project or a Tuesday storm. Here is where the line actually sits, with the city and hauler pages named so you can check it yourself.
How Pearland's Free Curbside Program Actually Works
Pearland's residential collection runs through Frontier Waste Solutions, the city's contracted hauler. Bulk items, bundled brush, and bagged green waste all go out together on your regular collection day, and the weekly limit for that combined set-out is 2 cubic yards.
The prep rules are specific, and skipping them is the most common reason a pile gets left at the curb:
- Brush and branches bundled to 4 feet by 2 feet
- Branches no thicker than 4 inches in diameter
- Bundles weighing no more than 40 lbs each
- Green waste (grass, leaves, small clippings) bagged in clear or brown bags, not dark ones
You can read the rules directly from the source: Frontier Waste Solutions' City of Pearland page and the city's own 2026 collection guide, both of which spell out the 2 cubic yard weekly limit and the bundling rules above. Frontier also offers a paid special pickup for anything over that limit, quoted on request, which is worth knowing exists even if it is not the free option.
What the Free Program Won't Take at All
A few categories are excluded outright, not just capped:
- Dirt, soil, and sod
- Rock and concrete
- Construction and demolition debris
- Limbs over 4 inches in diameter or longer than the bundle limit
None of the source pages we checked mention stumps by name for the Pearland weekly program one way or the other. Given the diameter and bundling limits above, a stump is not something you are going to bundle to program spec, so in practice it falls outside what the weekly pickup is built to handle. We do not grind stumps, but if yours is already cut loose, we will quote hauling it once we see it.
More brush than the bundle limit allows?
Send a photo, get a number, skip the special-pickup wait.
The Real Dividing Line Is Volume, Not the Kind of Yard Waste
Pearland's cap is 2 cubic yards a week, combined across bulk items, brush, and green waste. Houston runs it differently: the city's Heavy Trash program, which is where yard waste and tree waste are collected, caps a set-out at 8 cubic yards, but it only comes around every other month, up to six times a year, not weekly. Houston's program does accept tree limbs and stumps, with limbs capped at 8 inches in diameter and 10 feet long, which is broader than what Pearland's weekly bundle limit allows, but only on that bimonthly schedule.
Either way, a normal weekend of hedge trimming, a fence line of brush, or a full tree's worth of limbs after a storm adds up to more than either city program is sized to absorb in one pass. That is not a knock on either program. A curbside service built for the steady drip of grass clippings and small trimmings is not built for a one-time spike.
The Other Dividing Line Is Timing
Both cities' free programs run on a fixed calendar. Pearland is weekly, on your set collection day. Houston's Heavy Trash and tree waste service is bimonthly, on a published route schedule. What neither program does is move up because you need the yard clear this week.
That gap shows up around real dates: a closing on the house next Tuesday, an inspection scheduled for Thursday, an HOA letter with a deadline on it, or listing photos booked for the weekend. If the next city pickup does not land before the date that actually matters, the free program is not late, it is just not the tool for that job.
Closing, inspection, or listing photos this week?
Same-day and next-day slots across the south suburbs.
What It Costs When the Free Program Doesn't Cover It
We price the same way for yard waste as for anything else we haul: by how much room it takes in the trailer.
- Minimum Pickup, Small items / 1-2 pieces: starting at $125
- Small Trailer Load, About 2.25 cu yd / quarter trailer: starting at $175
- Medium Trailer Load, 4.5 cu yd / half trailer: starting at $225
- Large Trailer Load, About 6.75 cu yd / three-quarter: starting at $325
- Full Trailer Load, 9 cu yd / full trailer: starting at $449
Brush and limbs are light and bulky. They fill the trailer by volume long before they get anywhere near a weight limit, which is the opposite of a load of dirt or concrete. A pile of hedge trimmings that looks modest on the ground can still fill a full trailer, and $449 is the price of one full trailer load, not a cap on the job. A big cleanup can run more than one load, priced load by load, same as any other job.
We haul yard waste, we do not cut it. We are not a tree service. If a tree needs to come down or a limb needs to be cut off, that is an arborist's job, not ours. Once it is on the ground, cut and ready to load, we take it from there. A stump that is already cut loose gets quoted case by case once we see the size of it, because stumps vary too much in weight and root mass to price sight unseen.
For the full ladder and how we size a load, see the pricing guide.
Yard already cleared to the curb?
We load, we haul, the driveway is clear when we leave.
Same rule applies to what we haul as to what the city hauls
Dirt, sod, and soil loads are outside what we take too. If the job is a mix of yard waste and dirt, tell us that when you call so we can tell you what applies.
On a fixed date, not a fixed schedule
We work seven days a week, same-day and next-day, out of Pearland and across the south side, because a closing date does not care what day the city's truck normally runs.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is yard waste pickup actually free in Pearland?
Yes, within limits. Pearland's contracted hauler, Frontier Waste Solutions, collects bundled brush and bagged green waste on your regular service day at no extra charge, up to a 2 cubic yard weekly limit. Past that limit, or for anything the program excludes, it stops being free.
Does the city take a whole pile of hedge trimmings and tree limbs at once?
Only up to the weekly cap, and only if it is prepped the way the program requires. A weekend of hedge work or a storm-downed limb usually produces more volume in one shot than a weekly curbside limit is built to absorb. That is the gap we fill.
Do you cut down trees or grind stumps?
No. We are a hauling company, not a tree service. If a tree, limb, or stump is already cut and on the ground, we load it and haul it. Standing trees, active cutting, and stump grinding are outside what we do. A stump that is already cut loose is priced case by case once we see it.
How much does it cost when the free pickup doesn't cover it?
We price by how much room the debris takes in the trailer. A minimum pickup starts at $125, a small load starts at $175, a medium load starts at $225, a large load starts at $325, and a full trailer load of 9 cubic yards starts at $449. Brush and limbs are light and bulky, so they usually fill the trailer by volume long before the load gets heavy.
What won't either program take?
Dirt, sod, rock, and concrete are excluded from curbside yard waste programs in both cities, and we treat soil loads the same way on our end. Construction and demolition debris is a separate category from yard waste everywhere, including on our trailer.
Skip the Cap, Get the Yard Clear
Call or text 281-202-9668 with a photo of the pile and we will give you a price before we load. No waiting on the next collection day, no bundling to spec. Better Call Daw.