Sterilizing soil/compost with a microwave?

I hate to say this, but Nullis is right. Nuking your soil is absolutely taking 1 step forward and 9 steps back. If you want to base my knowledge by my post count that's fine, but about an hour of searching on the internet will tell you why it's bad. Seriously, what the hell are you going to inoculate with the micros? THEY HAVE NOTHING TO FEED OFF OF!!! You've obliterated any trace minerals and micro nutrients that the micros are going to feed off of.... Unless you completely re-amend the soil with guanos and humus and worm castings and peat, the dirt is absolutely useless for an organic medium.

It confused me that me3 'liked' that post and then went on to pretentiously criticize my comments... maybe he was just being ironic?

I realize that most folks who see meso\macro-fauna (which includes larger arthropods) crawling around their compost don't stop to think that it might actually be a good thing, but it typically is. A better way to stave off pests in your compost pile is to try to get your pile thermophilic (which will happen given a large enough pile and sufficient green material\nitrogen), and introduce known beneficial organisms that are predators to a variety of soil-dwelling pests.

Beneficial nematodes and predator mites (Hypoaspis) are quite ideal for this as they both go after hundreds of species of pest insects. The mites may also eat some of the nematodes, but that's all good in the soil food web. Once the compost is done you can examine it visually and see if the mites decided to stick around (you wont be able to see the nematodes). Both are excellent to have in your containers as well, so they'll be defending your plants all the way through. I would really suggest you take assay of what species of insects are crawling about the pile anyways; it's fun and educational and you can use the internet to help you identify the bugs you find... then you can find out if it's a pest insect or what it's role in nature is.

its really alot easier. to get a 10 dallar garbege can fill it with your soil add alaph pellets mix it up, and put the lid on it for 3 weeks it cooks itself

I have used in treated compost in side. I can not say that I had any negative benefits from it. I did see what I think may have been tripe in my buds last week but the original introduction of compost was months ago so I don't think there is any connection. However, I did this against all conventional teaching, organic or not. You take a risk of introducing any number of bugs that would thrive in doors.
Have you used this compost out doors? Grew any thing in it? What where the results? Did the plants thrive, how where the roots, did they bare any fruit?
Have you had the compost test for nutrients? Soil can be tested in every state by the agriculture extension for a small fee?
Be safe its not worth taking risk with your investment?

Yeh of course! The oven takes longer as it has to heat through, its only insects and eggs, and possibly seeds you want to kill, and im sure bacteria dies quickly under that stres. 30 seconds should be ample - also I don't really want compost in my oven. The microwave is a spare one anyway. Thx for the tip!! Made my day that has.

Nullis said:

It confused me that me3 'liked' that post and then went on to pretentiously criticize my comments... maybe he was just being ironic?

I realize that most folks who see meso\macro-fauna (which includes larger arthropods) crawling around their compost don't stop to think that it might actually be a good thing, but it typically is. A better way to stave off pests in your compost pile is to try to get your pile thermophilic (which will happen given a large enough pile and sufficient green material\nitrogen), and introduce known beneficial organisms that are predators to a variety of soil-dwelling pests.

Beneficial nematodes and predator mites (Hypoaspis) are quite ideal for this as they both go after hundreds of species of pest insects. The mites may also eat some of the nematodes, but that's all good in the soil food web. Once the compost is done you can examine it visually and see if the mites decided to stick around (you wont be able to see the nematodes). Both are excellent to have in your containers as well, so they'll be defending your plants all the way through. I would really suggest you take assay of what species of insects are crawling about the pile anyways; it's fun and educational and you can use the internet to help you identify the bugs you find... then you can find out if it's a pest insect or what it's role in nature is.

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LD25Delta9 said:

I hate to say this, but Nullis is right. Nuking your soil is absolutely taking 1 step forward and 9 steps back. If you want to base my knowledge by my post count that's fine, but about an hour of searching on the internet will tell you why it's bad. Seriously, what the hell are you going to inoculate with the micros? THEY HAVE NOTHING TO FEED OFF OF!!! You've obliterated any trace minerals and micro nutrients that the micros are going to feed off of.... Unless you completely re-amend the soil with guanos and humus and worm castings and peat, the dirt is absolutely useless for an organic medium.

Click to expand...

I gotta agree that nuking compost/soils is a bad idea. The whole concept of Organics and soil is the symbiotic relationship between the micro/macro fauna, mycorrhizal fungi and plants. There are certainly enough "inocculants" being sold out there, but we're talking nature here, and there is a diversity balance there that I don't believe we can achieve by re-inocculation. As LD25 said, thats 1 step forward and 9 steps back. Man is constantly trying to "IMPROVE" nature, only to get smacked down periodically.
Organics isnt about the nutes the plant gets, it's more about the delivery system, and there is NO BETTER way to ensure plant nutrition than organics. If you want a sterile environment, go hydroponic where you'll "control" everything.
Almost without exception, Botanists consider the mycorrhizal symbiotic relationship as being the single most important evolutionary step plants achieved since they populated dry land about 400 million yrs ago, and without that relationship, the full potential of the plants genetics cannot be achieved.
Gardening, whether indoors or out, is by necessity a dirty business. Besides, unless you live "down under" where even the worms are venomous, there really isn't much outside that isn't already in your home anyway if you go in and out, have pets, or bring anything inside your home. Vigilant weeding and pest control are needed, not sterile soil. The WORST case of fungus gnats I ever had was from a bag of "sterilized" soil I used early on.