compost to be used indoors

[Anne]

Could anyone advise me how to prepare compost for use in the house for indoor plants? There are bugs and flies and I would prefer not to bring them in. Thank you.

[Doug Kanter]

Working from ancient memory here! The book "Crockett's Victory Garden" suggests pasteurizing it outside in a big pot, perhaps over a gas grill. Add enough water so it doesn't burn. He says it stinks to high hell, so do it on a day with a breeze, and away from open windows. I don't recall how long this should take, but I'll guess and say 20 minutes from the time it starts boiling.

[Frogleg]

Or you could buy some commercial compost for your houseplants.

[Phisherman]

This is not really practical. It is better to purchase sterilized potting mixes for indoor use.

However, you can sterilize your compost. Place compost in a baking pan, wet it thoroughly, and bake it in a 275-degree oven for an hour. Allow the baked compost to dry, then screen it to make it light and fluffy. There will be an earthy odor from the baking process, but it should disappear with a few hours.

[Tom Randy]

Don't bother with it, it's more trouble than it's worth. Buy commercial humus.

[Salty Thumb]

a [e-mail] (Anne) wrote in news: [e-mail]:

If I recall correctly, one of the advantages of compost is the biological action. Sterilizing seems counterproductive. I am a cheapskate, but I go and buy potting soil anyway. It might even drain better than home made oven roasted compost.

[HA HA Budys Here]

Homor Simpson:

"mmmmmmmmmmmmmm... Earthy homemade oven-roasted compost.... Aghhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh" (drooling)

[Beecrofter]

Sift it and allow it to dry out. If you spread it on hot pavement for a day in the sun that would pretty much do the trick. You could sterillize it but it's more effort than it is worth.

[tomjasz]

Quality compost has disease suppressive qualities, why in the world would anyone want to sterilize it?

Find a source of quality vermicompost and use it. Vermicompost from tested sources will not be pathogenic!

[Doug Kanter]

That's ONE of the advantages. The other is the physical structure - far better than some of the soilless mixes sold as houseplant soil.

[Doug Kanter]

Compost's great stuff, but you cannot assume that the beneficial creatures living in it are good to have indoors where there are probably no natural controls or competition.

[simy1]

I put manure and earthworms in my houseplants pots when I put them outside Memorial Day. The compost is done and mixed with existing soil by mid september when I take them inside.

[GrampysGurl]

A lady in the garden club lives in a condo with strict rules, she follows the same principles of composting in her basemet in a lidded 5 gallon bucket she bought at one of the large box stores like Lowes or Home Depot. Other then worms, squirrels and birds my compost pile doesn't attract anyone else, are you turning in your kitchen scraps???? Colleen Zone 5 CT

[GrampysGurl]

All my houseplants have worms in them because I used soil and compost from the garden to plant my houseplants... the stuff I put them in is better then storebought and since it's free it's cheaper..... my plants do very well. Colleen Zone 5 CT

[David Ross]

Rather than compost for potted plants, I strongly suggest my home-made potting mix. See .

The problem with compost is not with the bugs. It's the fact that it keeps decomposing and shrinking. You can't merely add more compost to the top of a pot because that will eventually bury the plant's crown and may cause the plant to rot and die. Instead, you must repeatedly remove the plant and add more compost to the bottom and sides of the pot.

My mix does use some compost because it contains the microbes necessary to convert the nutrients (e.g., blood meal and bone meal) into forms that plant roots can absorb. However, the main constituents are sand (which does not decompose) and peat moss (which decomposes very slowly). Also, my mix will not become waterlogged, which can be a problem with fine compost.