Disposing of Toxic Gardening Supplies

Now that you’ve made the switch to organic gardening or are at the very least trying to reduce the amount of chemical fertilizers and such that you use, it’s more than likely that you have bags of old fertilizer, bug sprays, herbicides, or other toxic gardening supplies hanging around the garage or tool shed. Or, you may have bought that big bag of fertilizer because it was cheaper but never really needed it. If so, here’s some information on how to dispose of them properly.

First take a look at what you have--herbicide, pesticide, fertilizer, or other. Is it old? New? Unopened? Almost gone? If it’s unopened or something you bought fairly recently (last year) AND has been stored properly in dry, cool location you could consider donating it to a community gardening group. Under no circumstances should you pour any of these substances down the storm sewer drain, your toilet, or the sink--in many places it’s against the law. Not should you dump them on the ground or throw them in the trash for pickup.

If it’s a pesticide or herbicide that has been hanging around for a while and is caked together or unusable, then it’s time to take it to the nearest household hazardous waste site. Call your municipality or visit www.earth911.org to find a recycling or disposal site.

Please make this part of Spring cleaning.