We are looking forward to the unofficial start to the summer of 2023 in New York State. The weather, for the most part, has not been to bad to kick off the month of May. April was one of the coldest and wettest in a long time and we are due for some nice weather.

Most of the people that I saw this past weekend were doing yard cleanup and yard work around their homes. It is that time of the year to get things looking great and in a position to just keep up with the maintenance for the summer.

But with the cleanup comes a load of sticks and brush and many are not sure what to do with them. Do you wait for the town or village to come by and leave it at the road for them to collect? Or do you get a fire going and burn it? Option B is always the easiest and most efficient way. However, here in New York State, there is an annual ban in place on burning larger fires.

According to the New York State DEC website:

In towns with a total population less than 20,000, you may burn tree limbs with attached leaves. The limbs must be less than 6 inches in diameter and 8 feet in length (also referred to as brush). However, this is not allowed from March 16 through May 14 due to the increased risk of wildfires. Burning loose leaves or leaf piles is illegal.

As we get ready to start the second half of the May, it is pretty dry and use should use your best judgment with these fires if you are planning on using them to dispose of those limbs and such.

Th DEC has also released some helpful tips for preventing the spread of fires around your home.

Remove all dry grass, brush, and dead leaves at least 30 feet from your home. Space trees and shrubs at least 10 feet apart. Reduce the number of trees in heavily wooded areas.

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