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Gardeners struggling to know what to do with their garden waste if their council does not provide a bin could be helped by four ingenious ways to get rid of green trash. Not every household in the UK is entitled to a garden waste bin from their local authority, so knowing what to do with that mountain of cuttings and old leaves can be tricky.

The majority of local authorities charge an annual fee for the collection of garden waste. Some London councils are slapping charges of over £100 per year on residents for collections, while others provide the service free of charge to all residents with a garden. Under North Yorkshire Council, garden waste collections take place between March to early December and a waste licence costs £52 per year and covers one 240-litre wheelie bin to be emptied fortnightly.

Recycling garden waste can of course be done for free at most municipal tip sites, but gardeners would need to be able to get it to the tip in the first place.

Ross Dyke, horticultural expert at Hornby George PR and founder of gardening podcast The Plant Pod and Get Children Growing initiative, told Ideal Home it was important to check your local council website to see what services were on offer.

He told the magazine: "However, there are numerous practical and environmentally friendly solutions available to help manage garden waste effectively. Whether you reside in a cosy flat, a rented home, or live beyond the reach of your council's waste collection service, you can still find respectable ways to dispose of your garden waste and keep your outdoor space tidy."

Compost

Mr Dyke said starting a compost heap or bin was one of the best ways to use garden waste. The resulting decayed mulch from the compost was a great way to feed your garden for free by using it as fertiliser.

According to the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS), composting is a great way to make use of your garden waste - everything from lawn clippings to annual weeds, hedge-trimmings to faded flowers. You can also add plant-based kitchen waste, such as veg peelings, along with paper and cardboard.

When spread over the soil surface or lightly forked in, home-made compost adds valuable organic matter that improves the soil's structure, aeration and biodiversity. It can boost moisture retention in fast-draining sandy soils and aid drainage in heavy clay soils. Used as a mulch, it helps to hold moisture in the soil and slow down evaporation in summer.

Recycling centre

Local recycling centres have designated areas for green/garden waste. The waste will be transported to large-scale composting facilities. Hiring a skip could also be a good option if you are likely to produce a lot of waste in quite a short space of time. Paying for waste to be taken away, in a skip or by a reputable waste clearance company, might be a suitable option for garden clearance projects.

It's also worth considering things you want to get rid of may be exactly what another gardener needs. Topsoil, logs and paving slabs are the type of items advertised free for collection on local social media groups or organisations like Freecycle.

Use a private company

According to Mr Dyke: "If your council doesn't provide garden waste collection, private companies are an excellent alternative. But you need to make sure they are licensed waste carriers, ensure that you confirm their registration; this is crucial to prevent any problems with illegal dumping."

Join a community composting scheme

Community composting projects can be a great way to recycle waste and give back locally with it being used perhaps to fertilise local green spaces or allotments.

There are also massive commerical composting sites like the Veolia one in Rainham, Essex. According to Veolia, the site handles around 70,000 tonnes of green waste per annum and accepts waste from local authorities including the East London Waste Authority, the Western Riverside Waste Authority, Bexley, Essex, Kent and Medway.

The huge compost heap produces over 250,000 tonnes of award-winning compost per annum which is sold on the retail market. Compost from the Rainham site has been used at the Eden Project and at Canary Wharf.