Recycle Bags in the Organic Garden

Posted by Jamie McIntosh Jan 31, 2008

One of my New Year’s Resolutions was to recycle my plastic grocery bags. I had done this once upon a time, but fell out of the habit when I nearly suffocated under an avalanche of bags that had fallen from its perch in the garage. It would be lovely if we could set the bags out with our regular recycling materials at the curb, but I have to take them an offsite drop-off point. This requires the use of my memory, something that seems to be in short supply since the birth of my third child.

So, my resolve fortified with a twinge of guilt, I’m back in the same boat, lousy with plastic bags. Perhaps it’s time to find a new way to keep these sacks out of the landfill.

Consider the possibilities:

• Use plastic bags to line terra cotta pots for better moisture retention. Tuck the ends of the bag over the top of the soil and cover with mulch.
• Cram several dozen bags in the bottom of your largest planting container. Most annuals only send their roots down into the first few inches of soil, so this saves expensive potting soil and lightens the weight of the containers.
• Cut the bags into strips and use them as plant ties.

Do you have any other ideas? Email me and let me know.