Keep Gastonia Beautiful events aim to make an impact in the community and highlight our mission.
Below you can find when our events are generally held, click on each tab below to learn more about what to expect at each event.
January:
February:
March: Spring Black Gold Sales, Arbor Day, Great American Cleanup starts
April: Spring Black Gold Sales, Earth Day/Shred Day, Great American Cleanup Continues, Beetopia (check Bee City Page for details)
May: Last Spring Black Gold Sale (if supplies remain), Great American Cleanup Continues
June: Great American Cleanup Wrap up
August: School Year Prep
September: Fall Black Gold Sales
October: Fall Black Gold Sales
November: Firewood Sales, America Recycles Day/Shred Day
December: Tree Lighting
Tuesday, September 22 Welcome Autumn with Keep Gastonia Beautiful Fall Storytime To RSVP for this event click here Saturday, September 26 Community Cleanup To help us plan for the day please use this link to register ahead of time. Saturday, October 3 Riversweep 9 a.m. - 11:00 a.m. Saturday, October 3 and October 10th if supplies last Halloween Costume Swap 8-11 a.m. Saturday, October 24 Scarecrow Event 9:00 a.m. - 12 noon Fall 2026 Dates TBD What Is Black Gold? When: Regular sales take place every spring and fall as scheduled. Cost: CASH ONLY $20.00 per scoop To keep traffic moving at the site, please be sure to tarp your load at the top of the road. What’s the difference between Black Gold and mulch? In the event of rain please call 704-833-1578 or visit www.facebook.com/keepgastoniabeautiful for information on cancelation or possible rescheduling of sale. Help us prevent litter... Bring a Tarp to Cover Your Load! All funds go toward KGB’s beautification efforts.
Join Keep Gastonia Beautiful twice a year for SHRED DAY! Mark your calendars! Saturday, November 7, 2026 Do bring 3 banker boxes (or similar size plastic bins)
DO NOT bring already shredded papers To ensure all citizens are able to utilize this FREE event, we ask that you only bring personal items to shred, All sensitive documents are shredded on-site and recycled at our local SONOCO
Goodwill Dell Reconnect will accept the following items in all conditions and all brands: Desktops, laptops, mouses and keyboards
Fall 2026 Firewood Dates TBD 8 a.m. - 10 a.m.**or until we sell out CASH ONLY $60 for an entire truckload.
Other Events
Fall 2026 Community Engagement
9:00 a.m., 10:00 and 11:00
30 Minute sessions at the Gastonia Farmers Market 
10 a.m. - 12 noon @ Garland Municipal Center
Lineberger Park Greenway
Register Link, coming soon!
Gastonia Farmers Market, 410 E. Long Avenue
Rotary Community Garden, 406 E. Franklin Blvd
Black Gold
Black Gold consists exclusively of ground compost from leaves collected from Gastonia residences and municipal properties.
It contains no dyes, artificial fertilizers, or additives of any kind.
Fridays 1:00 pm to 5:00 pm
Saturdays 8:00 am to 12:00 noon
Where: 3100 Duke Street (off of Gaston Day School Rd.)
(approximately 3 cubic yards) 3 cubic yards = 240 sq ft at 4 inches thick.
This will fill an entire back of a pickup truck. 
KGB’s Black Gold is different than the typical backyard compost that often includes food waste and possibly chicken/rabbit manure. Our Black Gold is almost exclusively leaf and maybe some yard clippings, which makes for good nutrients, that when mixed with soil, slowly release its nutrients back to plants. It is a wonderful amendment and can reduce or eliminate the need for chemical fertilizers. Many people side-dress existing plants, giving time for the Black Gold to slowly release to the soil.
Mulch, on the other hand, is a more course product, and although as organic as is compost, will need much more time for microorganisms to break down the material and allow nutrients to enter into the soil, ready for plants to absorb.
NO DELIVERIES AVAILABLE
Shred Day
(dates can vary from year to year so check back for specific dates each year)
NEW TIME: 8-11 a.m.
174 E. Main Avenue, Gastonia
Parking Lot next to Bradley Bus Station and across from FUMC 
Do bring your sensitive materials
(i.e. items with your social security information, bank information, old taxes, etc.)
Do sort your boxes prior to arrival
Do tell your friends and family about this FREE event!
DO NOT bring mixed papers, i.e. magazines, newspapers, etc.
This takes up valuable space others could use to shred their documents
DO NOT have items like batteries, thumb drives, or CD's in your boxes, they can break the machine
this event is not intended for businesses.
iPads, Surfaces, tablets & e-readers
Monitors, printers & scanners
Flat screen televisions
Home audio & theater equipment
Video games & gaming systems
iPods, MP3 players & accessories
Cameras, media cards, video equipment & GPS systems
Mobile phones & accessories
External & internal hard drives
Power cords, chargers & cables
Ink & toner cartridges
Children’s educational toys
Firewood
@Ferguson Park
1401 Golf Course Drive, Gastonia, NC
Parks and Recreation staff are on-site to load up your truck, just drive up and we'll take care of you!
Offices for Keep Gastonia Beautiful are located at the Garland Municipal Business Center at 150 S. York Street on the second floor.
Contact Information
Garland Municipal Business Center
150 S. York Street, Gastonia, NC 28052
(PO Box 1748, Gastonia, NC 28053-1748)
704-869-1938 (office)
704-866-6067 (fax)