By Signpost Staff
Residents of Placitas and surrounding areas should expect to see increased activity along NM State Highway 165 Saturday as over 65 volunteers participate in a major trash pickup.
Jardineros de Placitas, a local charitable and social organization celebrating its 60th anniversary in 2025, is leading the effort. The group is expanding its regular quarterly cleanup from one mile to six miles of Highway 165.
The cleanup, which is set to start at 1 p.m., pays tribute to the “Flower Power” tradition of Jardineros’ earliest members, who began keeping the road tidy in the 1960s.
Joining Jardineros are members of the Placitas Community Library and the Las Placitas Presbyterian Church, who will clean an additional three miles. In total, nine miles of Highway 165 will be targeted for beautification.
“Jardineros and our partner organizations are taking actor Bryan Cranston’s ‘Keep Litter Out of My Territory’ words to heart,” said Cheryl Betterly, Jardineros vice president and chair of the highway cleanup team. “We support our state’s new anti-litter campaign and urge everyone to break bad habits and not trash our Land of Enchantment’s beautiful scenery and roadways.”