Melissa is happy to be helping the environment.
Gardeners tend to be collectors with nurturing and thrifty natures. These temperaments usually lead to garages and sheds chock full of flower pots that are “too good to throw away.” The staff of the IMA Greenhouse and volunteers from the Horticultural Society would like to help you clear out the excess inventory with our annual pot recycling day. We are particularly seeking those types of pots and flats we use regularly, including clay pots in any size, 4.5” plastic pots and smaller nursery pots.
In recent years, these donated pots have saved the Greenhouse thousands of dollars in new container purchases, allowing us to put our limited funds to better use. As petrochemical costs continue to rise, plastic pot prices have skyrocketed. Add in the cost of freight and terra cotta pots have gone up considerably, as well. We are helping prevent limited resources and energy from going to the production of new pots. Reusing the containers also keeps pounds of plastic out of the waste stream. It is estimated that a 1 gallon plastic pot might take 200 years to breakdown.
We also get warm fuzzy feelings from sharing! There are times when more materials than we are able to use and store have been donated. After past recycling events, we have shared with other not-for- profit groups including the IUPUI Greenhouse, Indiana School for the Blind and Visually Impaired, Marion County Master Gardeners and Indiana Native Plant and Wildflower Society. Also many items have been returned to the growers to help them keep their costs down so we can provide better prices to our shoppers!
Carole up to her elbows in reclaimed pots.
On Saturday, October 1 from 10:00 – 1:00pm your pots can be dropped in the Greenhouse parking lot. You will be greeted by friendly volunteers from the IMA Horticultural Society. The volunteers will sort, stack and sanitize the incoming pots to ready for reuse. These folks literally get up to their elbows in this work. Stop by with your donations and visit awhile. The weather forecast is for a bright sunny day and I can guarantee that the volunteers will have a sunny disposition, too. For more information, please call 317-920-2652.
Filed under: Greenhouse, Horticulture
