What About Those Old Gardening Containers?

Published on: 6/5/2014

Now that spring seems to have actually arrived, many of us have purchased new annuals, hanging plants, and beautiful potted gardens.  Do you have any leftover plastic gardening containers?  No need to put them in the trash - they can be recycled! 

Johnson's Nursery, Inc. headquartered at W180 N6275 Marcy Road, in Menomonee Falls, will be holding the semi-annual landscape plastics recycling collection event on Saturday, June 14 from 8 a.m. until noon. This recycling event is a cooperative effort between Johnson's Nursery, Inc. and the Waukesha County Department of Parks and Land Use that allows residents and businesses to drop off used plastic growing pots, plant trays, and plant containers free of charge for recycling. These plastic plant containers must be free of plant debris, tags, and metals and will be sorted on site by plastic type in identified containers.

“This collaboration provides an important recycling service for Waukesha County and Southeastern WI that is made possible through this unique partnership,” stated Rebecca Mattano, Waukesha County Solid Waste Supervisor.

Johnson’s Nursery, Inc. has been in business for over 54 years. As the company grows, it continues to supply its customers with high quality plants and services but is also doing its part to reduce plastic horticultural waste. “This program provides a sustainable option for residents and businesses to close the loop through recycling used pots. These pots provide the necessary materials to manufacture new pots and ultimately divert these plastics from our local landfills,” said Chad Johnson, President and owner of Johnson’s Nursery, Inc.

Across the U.S., millions of pounds of agricultural plastics are discarded in local landfills every year although, according to East Jordan Plastics, Inc., the manufacturer and recycler of plastic plant containers, recycling plastic plant containers can recover upwards of 60% of the energy put into processing the product initially while saving landfill space.

For more information about the landscape plastics recycling event at Johnson's Nursery, Inc., visit www.johnsonsnursery.com, call 262-252-4988 or contact Waukesha County Recycling at 262-896-8300.