CSIROCare Black Mountain Early Childhood Centre in Acton is seeking donations of old toothbrushes, empty toothpaste tubes and floss containers to win a recycled garden set for the school.

The three schools with the most oral hygiene waste collected and highest numbers of online votes, and two schools selected randomly, will each win a recycled garden set worth more than $7000.

It includes garden beds, two-custom made benches, a rubbish bin and a $500 voucher to buy seeds and plants.

CSIROCare Black Mountain has already collected about 262 items and is currently in 19th place in the competition; more than 200 schools nationwide are participating.

Petra Kuhnert, whose son attends CSIROCare Black Mountain, said the project was a way to teach children about sustainability and recycling.

“I thought this would be a great opportunity not only for the kids to learn about it [recycling and sustainability] but also the parents," she said.

“Some point down the track we’re going to run into this problem of not knowing what to do with it and I think we’re in a throwaway society at the moment.”

A new garden set will help reinforce environmental awareness among the children at CSIROCare Black Mountain through growing fresh produce.

Donations of toothbrushes, toothpaste tubes and packaging and empty dental floss containers can be dropped off at the Discovery Cafe on North Science Road, Acton.

The competition runs until October 31. For more information or to vote for CSIROCare Black Mountain, visit terracycle. com.au