Richard

San Diego (city) has a recycling and greenery program: on alternate weeks they pick up barrels of one or the other along with the trash. At the city facility, they process several hundred yards of greenery per day with a machine that mows down mulch piles the size of houses. To their credit, they also have capacity to process old or surplus lumber.

Now businesses in San Diego typically contract their refuse disposal with companies like EDCO. If the business separates refuse into different dumpsters, then they can contract with EDCO to make separate pickups and hence recycle.

The issue is that certain fiberous plants - including palms, yucca, etc. are hell on the machinery and in general do not produce good mulch and compost. Consequently, they are on the "unacceptable" list. The connection with this discussion is that the high volume stores would rather not spend time sorting their trash (the same problem occurs with residents of apartment buildings). The city of San Diego has been taking steps in this area passing ordinances to require recycling of paper and plastics from all stakeholders, but they have yet to follow through with a requirement for greenery.

There are 3 Home Depot stores within 12 miles of my home. The employees at one of them are very proactive and have developed an efficient system for "go-backs" in the Returns department - unique to that store. I noticed that they have also started sorting plant material. They have 4 dumpsters in the rear: trash, recycle, greenery, unresaleable lumber & sawdust. The dumpsters are in a secure enclosure.

I have also noticed that if you go into the millworks (milled lumber) section of any of these Home Depots, they have a barrel of scrap lumber next to a steel workbench with tools, and you can cut the length you need. It is sold by the inch at the same price of the full lengths. I asked an employee at one store about it: he said that they hardly throw any milled lumber away anymore.

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Tropicallvr

That's good to hear Richard.
My first 3 bananas I owned were Musa basjoo's being hauled to the dumpster(under watered, and browning), and I stopped the guy with the weel barrow and asked if I could have them, and he said "were not supposed to, but meet me out back by the dumpster", so basically that was all she wrote, been addicted to bananas ever since.

sandy0225

!hen I first started my greenhouse for a hobby, I needed pots and it looked like they were throwing plants away at Lowes. They were all thrown in a cart. I asked if I could have them so that I could have the pots and they said they return the dead plants like that for credit to their supplier, so no can do....I suppose the supplier throws them away instead, because I went back a few days later and the cart was gone,and the plants/pots weren't in the dumpster.

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1501 East Fuson Road
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specializing in bananas, heirloom tomatoes and water gardening plants~
check out our new online store at our website!

Ahava

This is pretty much it in one. I work at Wal-Mart, I used to work for the Target Lawn and Garden. Once plants started dying, my supervisor would mark them down once the blooms were spent and whatnot. The management of the store had her stop doing that because they'd rather get the "FULL CREDIT back" instead of just half price dollar amount they were getting, because the supplier either credits them back or replaces the plants, and the supplier wants to see the plants and destroy them so they KNOW they aren't getting stolen from, think about it from a business standpoint, a retailer's giving you back just the pots and no plants... you as a business owner need to make sure the retailer is keeping to their word. Now at the Wal-Mart I'm at, the Musa Zebrina's they had were pretty frost bitten, they sold them to a customer, the whole lot for a dollar a piece, but it depends on the manager, maybe if you go to another Wal-Mart, the supervisor may refuse because of whatever deals they have with the nurseries they are getting their plants from. As for fish, when they die, they are credited back to the store, they are just tossed in the compactor..., just as if a customer breaks a plate or whatever and walks away... it's all credited back, that's why people aren't forced to pay anymore for things they break... It's not looked as a living organism as just a dollar amount and way to make a profit. But I guess that's why these big places stay in business the way they do. I used to try and save plants all the time when I worked for Target, by trying to water them properly and give them proper care, as did my superviser, who worked in the fields a good deal of her life... but sneaking away with half dead plants,... wasn't worth losing my job.

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chumleyrobert

I have tryed to save plants also from the dumpster Or the compactor (like Walmart uses). I have found that different stores have different policies. However, in your particular case of the "bottle Palm" or"Hyophorbe Lagenicaulis" from the Mascarene Islands is now considered "greatly endangered, being reduced to a single wild population" on the Islands Or (in the world). Your Lowes manager may want to know this fact quoted from.... Palms Throughout the World.... by David L. Jones.....Smithonian Institute Press 1994 I wish you well Fernie ,don't get arrested over it. Robert Chumley

xavierdlc61887

hey robert should i tell the manager to call u or should i just print this out and show it to him

jellyfish_sky

I wonder if writing polite and concise complain letters to each store would make a difference. Perhaps we could really make a difference! But then there's all the bureaucracy of big box stores....

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Bananaddiction~!

chumleyrobert

I would do both Fernando. I would be happy to inform him of the significance of this situation. Robert Chumley

chumleyrobert

I would think the management teams of Lowe's, Walmarts, and Home depot's would be very interested in proving that they're "Green Oriented" counteracting 'Global Warming' and would at least want to help save the "Bottle Palm" and perhaps other threatened species that are both endangered in the wilds,,,,,, and here at home at our local stores by apathetic or indifferent managers who seem to get some perverted joy out of "playing God" and destoying these beautiful life forms instead of allowing local horticulturists like yourself to rescue them and aid in their rehabilitation to a normal peaceful life. Otherwise , they may become called by some people as "the most well known Poachers of the later half of the 20th century". Robert Chumley

tgtobb

Offer to work for free, part time. You'll be willing to provide your own tools, insurance and uniforms while partially cleaning out their dumpster twice weekly

Regards/Roger, in Bangkok

Richard

I don't think they are playing God at all. Instead, they are trying to keep their job. I can personally verify that right now the job market is very tough.

Now at one of my local Home Depot stores, they have figured out away that everybody -- including the planet can win. If you don't like what is happening at your local store, then at least give the manager a print out of what I wrote below. I'm sure they'd love to improve their go-back system anyway.

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mskitty38583

i had the same problem. when they get things returned they the company recieves credit for that item. weather its walmart of lowes they do the same. so they just throw it out. now when you go to walmart you can get the ripped open bags of potting mix for half off. this is what happens when you take it up with the store manager more then 20 times in a growing season. lowes....it seems that everyplant i bye there has bugs that come out of nowhere. and when you tell their dept head, he just shakes his head and says i dunno know. so yes these places are stupid to throw away a plant that they can mark down half price. the company will still get credit for it and they still make money on it. maybe next time call for the store manager, if he dosent want to do anything, get his name and associate number and call the corporate and tell them about," the wasteful spending that lowes is costing the company." you start talking about wasteful spending to a corporation someone is gonna listen! just my .02 cents. and dont feel so bad we are with you!

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Ahava

MsKitty I have often wondered the same thing. You worked retail too so you know what I was talking about. And you also know until you go way up the chain in management, like district management up, they don't care, they really don't care... until you go to a higher manager who doesn't care, but doesn't like to be bothered about little things, so he chews out the store management, then things change... let me tell you how much management cares.... just the other day I had a customer asked the location of where they put the popcorn canisters, well the venders move them on us everyday, I didn't know since they moved them up front, and I had just gotten on the clock, and so I asked my CSM (Front lanes management) where they were since she had been there all day, and she said to me, "I don't know and I don't care since I'm off in ten mins..." Well needless to say I went and found the tins myself because, well I'm just a decent person, besides not just good customer service... and this is another thing I read... if you deal with the regular workers, and they have a bad attitude, it is more then likely the attitude of the management because the lower workforce for the most part reflects the attitude of the management. But the best way to get them hopping is to call the corporate and bitch like you never bitched before and annoy the heck out of them... that gets the ball rollin... I'm sorry to say...

I SO need to get out of retail for what little sanity I have left

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Richard

Yes, the old adage is: poison drips from the top down.

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xavierdlc61887

well i printed the thread and showed it to the store manager and he said to leave before he called the police and security....i stood my ground and said call them i think they should see this....me all scared....they called security only and escorted me out again this time i cursed and things about global warming and keeping the earth green and being only in for the money and that your commercials are very hypocritical they just said have a great evening sir and that was it i left think im not wanted in that store anymore....so much for getting hired there...kinda happy though because i wouldnt want to work where a store does that stuff and doenst care about anything excopt money. ok well i dont know what else to do so i guess im only one person who cant beat the giant

Zac in NC

Thats Very True.

This thread really makes me sick about what Lowes and Home Despot does.

Zac

Zac in NC

HOLY COW! They called security on you? Thats ridiculous. i don't think I'll be buying anything else from them then. They are just losing business.

Zac

xavierdlc61887

yes thatsthe second time too :P im really sad that those 2 bottle palms and other plants as well are going to become destroyed all because they were returned i mean the company that provided the money loses here and the big chain stores still win its a sick feeling but thats just the way it is and it sickens me....this just inspires me to open up my own nursery even more and work extra hard to keep and educate people about plants and discourage them to buy from big chain stores, because atleast with a single person nursery owned will help the customer out on how to raise,help them if the plant isnt doing well etc. ok well thanks for understanding guys it really relieves me that u have my back

Whatever

They came from the earth and they will just go back to the earth. I wouldn't get THAT upset over it.

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With my feet upon the ground I lose myself
between the sounds and open wide to suck it in.
I feel it move across my skin.
I'm reaching up and reaching out.
I'm reaching for the random or what ever will bewilder me.
And following our will and wind we may just go where no one's been.
We'll ride the spiral to the end and may just go where no one's been.

Spiral out. Keep going...

Richard

There is one Home Depot store in my locale where the Manager and the Employees really "get it". I will continue to shop for tools and building supplies there. I'm sorry to hear that the same is not true in your area.

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