MSU Florist offers help, incentive for 'vase hoarders'

Contact: Sammy McDavid

STARKVILLE, Miss.--Attention, flower-vase hoarders!

To help you--and you know who you are!!--free up valuable cabinet and closet space for other important keepsakes, the University Florist at Mississippi State is announcing the June 15 launch of its Vase Recycling Program.

As an enticement--as if you need one!!!--the student-staffed campus business and teaching laboratory now will swap one stem of flowers per usable vase. Exchanges only will take place on Mondays, however.

"Donors should remember to keep at least one vase so they will have something in which to keep our flowers," said Lynette McDougald.

"We also are taking vases that are broken, rusty, dirty-beyond-cleaning, and otherwise unusable, but there will be no flower swap for these," added the florist manager and instructor of plant and soil sciences.

By having the exchange each Monday, participants can have flowers for the week in their homes or offices, McDougald explained.

Mississippi State's unique floral management program was established more than two decades ago to help meet the needs of America's multibillion dollar retail floristry industry. The four-year program is the only one of its kind in the U.S.

For more vase-swap information, contact the florist at 662-325-3585 or www.theuniversityflorist.com/contact2.html.

For more information about Mississippi State University, see http://www.msstate.edu/.