TikTok user and gardener Shelby Wright | GrownWright (@grownwright) shared a genius hack for plastic cup reuse.
The scoop
Wright's content focuses on potted plant care and gardening hacks, so it is no wonder she posted this sustainable plant propagation hack.
@grownwright Save this idea for your next Starbucks run! 🌱🪴 #propagateplants #propbox #propagation #houseplantcare ♬ Get Ready - SUPER-Hi & NEEKA
In her video, she calls a Starbucks cup "The best DIY prop box."
Plant propagation is the act of creating new plants from already-growing specimens, as explained by the Missouri Master Gardener Core Manual, per the University of Missouri. Home gardeners take clippings from a parent plant to create its genetic twin. These cuttings can be from the leaf, stem, or bud.
Propagation tubes or boxes keep the plant enclosed and are used to rapidly reproduce plants. New clippings require humidity, according to a Michigan State University pamphlet.
With the lid on, Starbucks and other to-go coffee cups keep high humidity within, and the sipping hole allows for valuable air flow.
To propagate in a single-use cup, simply keep the cup out of the trash and put plant clippings in gravel or water, depending on the plant, with the lid on. The clear cup will let gardeners monitor their plants and watch root growth.
How it's helping
Sometimes, the most well-deserved treat is an ice-cold coffee from your favorite cafe, but most coffee shops serve to-go coffee in single-use plastic cups. These are an environmental detriment, but even single-use cups can be repurposed.
This plastic reuse keeps harmful plastic from filling our already polluted landfills and oceans. Even the 8,000 Starbucks paper cups sold every minute are lined with plastic, so they are not recyclable. Most of them end up in the trash, according to Clean Water Action.
When consumers reuse containers from Starbucks and other wasteful establishments, they do their part to protect the environment from excess plastic waste while also saving money.
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Sign me up 👍 What everyone's saying
Commenters on Shelby Wright's TikTok post were inspired.
"Love this idea!!" one commented.
Another dug through their garbage bin so they could do this hack. "And just through one away… About to go out to the trash to get it," they said.
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