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ASHEVILLE GREENWORKS
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  • Programs
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      • Native Pollinator Plants and Nurseries
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      • Pollinator Gardens & Meadows Project
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Do you ever find yourself at the French Broad River staring at piles of plastic litter wondering what you can do to stop this?  Asheville GreenWorks and our sister page, Going Plastic Free, are here to help you make this happen! Mind Your Plastic May is a month-long campaign to inform you about the grave social and environmental harms that ensue from plastic waste and equip you with the knowledge to reduce plastic in your own life.  

All month long, we will be sharing plastic reduction tips, volunteer opportunities to address plastic waste, educational materials featuring local Asheville businesses, and much more. We aim to foster knowledge and encourage mindfulness around plastic consumption and disposal for individuals and business owners. This month, we hope you will follow us on Facebook and Instagram, where you will gain valuable knowledge about how to refuse, reduce, reuse, and recycle plastics, as well as learn about local waste reduction efforts.

Join our 
Race2Reduce and commit to decreasing your plastic usage for the entire month of May. Sign up here to join the challenge and earn points to win a $25/$50/$75 gift card to Ware!

Many thanks to the businesses and restaurants who supported this effort and are working hard to reduce their own plastic waste. #goingplasticfree

Join us in our love for the planet as we
 address and defeat our global plastic addition.
Donate now for a plastic-free future
Mind Your Plastic May is meant to encourage and challenge us in our journey to live plastic free. These posts are created by GreenWorks staff. If you've found these posts helpful and encouraging, please consider making a donation to support this work. If you have any questions, please email [email protected]

Growing a Plastic-Free Garden

5/23/2019

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As I started on this plastic-free journey with you a few weeks ago, I idealistically dreamed of growing my own vegetables, such as spinach, to avoid the plastic packaging in which so much produce is sold. What could be more natural and plastic-free than gardening? As I turned to our little raised bed in the front yard, I soon discovered how ubiquitous plastic is, even in our garden.
​
Prepping the Soil for Planting
Whether you’re planting a vegetable or flower garden, chances are you will need to clear some weeds and add some soil amendments to get the area ready for planting. Rather than using black plastic landscape “cloth” to rid the area of weeds, opt for plastic-free alternatives such as cardboard or newspaper that biodegrade and mix with the soil over time. Synthetic landscape fabric or plastic can kill the organisms and microbes that make for healthy soil.


Soil, compost, mulch and other soil amendments often come in plastic sacks. You can learn to make your own compost at home at one of GreenWorks’ monthly Composting Workshops and skip the middle-man. Some garden centers will deliver compost, mulch and soil by the truckload to your home -- just be ready to do some shoveling! If you must buy products in plastic bags, thoroughly wash the empty bags when done and take them to Ingles to be recycled with other plastic film.
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Planting and Growing
​As you assemble your seeds and starts to begin planting your garden, be mindful of plastic sneaking into the products. Glossy seed packets sometimes have a plastic liner to prevent moisture from damaging the seeds. Look for paper packets at your local garden store. Participate in a local seed swap and bring your own glass jars or paper bags as seed containers. Bountiful Cities coordinates the Asheville Buncombe Community GardenNetwork (CGN) which maintains a Seed Library at the Burton Street Recreation Center for exchanging seeds as well. Plan ahead for next year and attend a CGN seed-saving workshop in the fall to learn how to create your own store of seeds.


Commercially grown plants and starts are often sold in plastic pots and trays. Such plastic is not recyclable locally, but can be brought to a Lowe’s Garden Center where they will be recycled or reused. Lowe’s will also take the little plastic plant markers/labels. You can check with your local nursery or garden store to see if they will take the plastic pots or flats back. Or, save the containers to grow your own starts for next season.
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Image Credit: Point of Comfort​

To avoid the plastic altogether, look for plants in biodegradable pots or make your own from cardboard egg cartons, newspaper or cardboard toilet paper tubes. Check out this video from GrowVeg on how to make your own pots: 
​Cleaning Up
Weeding, pruning and harvesting produce a lot of yard waste. If you live within the City of Asheville and don’t have your own compost pile, you can have yard waste picked up at your curbside. Use brown paper yard waste bags, available at hardware stores, or a reusable bin to collect your plant material. This prevents unnecessary use of plastic trash bags, as the paper bags can be composted right along with the yard waste. Containing the plant material rather than piling it along the curb also keeps it from washing into our storm drain system and polluting local creeks and rivers. Enter your address HERE to find out if you’re in the City of Asheville and when your trash, recycling, and brush collection days are.

By going plastic-free in the garden, you can add to your overall joy of gardening and feeling of accomplishment. Do you have other tips for reducing plastic waste in the garden? Share your thoughts on the GreenWorks’ Facebook post related to this topic. Do you know someone who would like to learn more about going plastic-free? Forward this email and encourage them to check out all the previous posts on our website: www.ashevillegreenworks.org/mind-your-plastic-may.
Sincerely,
Dawn Chavez
Executive Director
​Asheville GreenWorks
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​Asheville GreenWorks is a 501(c)3 non-profit environmental organization, governed by a Board of Directors. Established in 1973, GreenWorks mission is to inspire, equip and mobilize individuals and communities to take care of the places we love to live.
  • Hard 2 Recycle
  • About
    • Job Openings
    • History
    • Staff/ Contact
  • Get Involved
    • Internships
    • Make a Donation
    • Sponsorship
    • Volunteer
    • Wish List
    • Youth Environmental Leadership Program >
      • YELP Staff & Alumni
      • How to Apply
  • Programs
    • Bee City USA Asheville >
      • 10th Anniversary Yearlong Pollination Celebration
      • Native Pollinator Plants and Nurseries
      • Pollinator Garden Certification
      • Pollinator Gardens & Meadows Project
    • Education
    • Urban Forestry >
      • Cool Green Asheville
      • Food Tree Project
      • RRI
      • Tree Nursery
      • Treasured Trees >
        • Treasured Trees Calendar
    • Rivers & Roads >
      • Adopt-a-Street
      • Clean Streams Day
      • Cleanup Supply Stations
      • Trash Trout
    • Waste Reduction >
      • Asheville Bag Monster
      • Composting Information
      • Flip Your Lid
      • Plastics Reduction Task Force
      • Recycling Information
  • Silent Auction
  • Upcoming Events
  • Newsletter
  • Donate
  • Benefit Concert
  • Blog Roll
    • Latest News
    • Mind Your Plastic May
    • Protect our Pollinators
    • Voice for the Trees