Create an upcycled planter this Earth Day!

Plant a seedling of your choice in a creatively upcycled container! Pick a seed from the Seed Library operated by MSU Libraries, and plant it in soil blended with Grow Green Vermicompost, super rich plant food made from Spartan kitchen scraps! Upcycle a plastic container by transforming it with unique reclaimed paper. All supplies are provided. 

What: Upcycled Planter Make & Take

When: Fri., April 22, 2022, from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. 

Where: MSU Libraries Makerspace, located on level 2 West of the main library

Hosts: Hollander MakeCentral Makerspace, in partnership with Spartan Upcycle and Grow Green Vermicompost, programs of the MSU Surplus Store & Recycling Center.

Choosing to rethink, repurpose and "re-earth"

Pre-consumer food scraps (rinds, peelings, seeds, etc.) and coffee grounds from MSU dining facilities are mixed with leaves and other locally-sourced dry organic material, then briefly hot composted before being processed by red wiggler worms! The result is Grow Green Vermicompost, a well-aged and stable soil amendment for plant growth for sale at the Surplus Store. Backyard gardens, farm crops, native and ornamental landscaping, and fussy houseplants will all appreciate the boost! Additional campus-generated food waste that isn't in the preferred worm diet is collected and transported to a local industrial composter.

As the store manager sees it, "waste is only a failure of the imagination." It's this thinking, or rather, "rethinking," that drives Spartan Upcycle, the creative reuse retail and education branch of SSRC. The Spartan Upcycle Store is a section of the Surplus Store that sells handcrafted upcycled items, DIY kits, and bulk materials for repurposing. Through campus collaborations and hands-on events that encourage participants to see materials and objects from a new perspective, Spartan Upcycle offers a creative and fun entry point to sustainable materials management and toward zero waste living.