Green-fingered East Ayrshire residents will have to fork out for a special permit if they want their garden waste to be collected.
A new brown bin tax comes into force at the end of this month, setting gardeners back £30 per bin.
The four-weekly collections will run from April to December but would-be Monty Dons are being offered the chance to apply for a free composter instead of splurging on the permit.
The local authority claims the new measure has been enforced as part of its main renewal and recovery priorities in response to COVID-19.
And all residents, regardless of age or ability, will be required to pay the charge if they wish to use the garden waste collection service, the council confirmed.
A statement on the council website read: "The way you dispose of your garden waste will be changing from the end of March 2021 following an extensive review of waste management that was carried out to help make our approach to waste more sustainable in response to rising costs and changing legislation.
"With a real need to reduce the amount of waste going to landfill and to increase rates of recycling, we hope that these changes will help with its commitment to improving the environment, one of its main renewal and recovery priorities in response to COVID-19."
Or, the council suggest, you can dispose of garden waste for free at the recycling centres on Western Road, Kilmarnock and at Garlaff, near Cumnock.
Council bosses have responded to claims the move could lead to a surge in fly-tipping.
Waste chiefs said that "a number of councils across the country have introduced this charge in recent years and found no evidence to suggest that fly tipping of green waste has increased as a result."
A number of residents unhappy with the new charge have also queried why the service isn't covered by council tax payments.
The council website states: "Garden waste is not one of the specified materials in the Waste (Scotland) Regulations 2012 which local authorities are required to collect for recycling."
To apply for a garden permit, visit www.our.east-ayrshire.gov.uk
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