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Press Release

Find Purrr-fect Plants, Pottery and Cats at Cal Poly

Contact: AnnMarie Cornejo

805-756-2427; ancornej@calpoly.edu

SAN LUIS OBISPO — Come to the Poly Plant Shop April 29-30 for cats, pottery, plants and more. The shop will host a variety of local artisans from the San Luis Obispo County arts and horticulture community in celebration of spring from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. each day at the horticulture unit.

A portion of the proceeds will be donated to the Cal Poly Cat Program, a nonprofit cat rescue and sanctuary operating on the Cal Poly campus, as a thank you from the plant shop’s resident cat, Tom. Twenty-year-old Tom is a fan favorite at the greenhouses, where he has lived since he was adopted from the Cal Poly Cat Program in 2006.

Tom, a 20-year-old white-haired cat lies on the calves of a kneeling plant store worker
Tom, 20, the Poly Plant Shop’s resident cat, was adopted from the Cal Poly Cat Program. A portion of the proceeds from the two-day event will be donated to the nonprofit cat rescue and sanctuary.

Vendors will include Steve Super Gardens and The Succ Shack with rare, unusual plants and succulents. Ceramics will be available for purchase through Richard Rowe Clayworks. Free mini workshops on staging succulents, mounting plants and replanting plants will be hosted throughout both days. In addition, cats available for adoption will visit from the Cal Poly Cat Program.

Student-grown tropical and indoor plants as well as tomato plants will also be available for purchase. In addition, the Cal Poly Creamery will sell student-made ice cream. Several student bands are slated to play throughout the event. Guests are encouraged to bring a blanket or lawn chair to enjoy Cal Poly’s nearby Leaning Pine Arboretum. 

The festivities, open to the public, will be held at the Environmental Horticultural Sciences Building (No. 48) on Via Carta Road off Highland Drive. Parking will be available for free in lot H14.

About Cal Poly’s College of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences

Cal Poly is a nationally ranked, comprehensive polytechnic university. The university’s College of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences, cafes.calpoly.edu, is comprised of expert faculty members who take pride in their ability to transform academically motivated students into innovative professionals ready to solve the complex challenges associated with feeding the world in sustainable ways. Students have access to state-of-the-art laboratories, including ranch land, orchards, vineyards and forests, all of which provide the basis for Cal Poly’s Learn by Doing methodology. It is the fifth-largest college of agriculture in the country, with 4,000 undergraduate students.