Toilet roll pots

[the.fee.fairy]

Right, so i just read the article on March planting.

I have a question about toilet paper pots.

If you've got to be careful about bacteria in the pots, then what about traces of faecal matter on toilet roll insides?

Is there really the amount on there that the health and safety brigade would have us believe?
Would it harm us?

I know that people use Humanure, bu that's rotted, so the bacteria in the matter have worked at decaying the pathogens, and it has heated itself to a suitable level. I also know that normal manure is horse poo/cow poo etc. but that has different pathogens in it, due to the diet and the fact that they don't shed blood cells like we do.

So...the bacteria present on toilet roll insides...is it enought to cause a problem either by diseasing he plants, or by leaching nasty stuff into the soil ready for us to eat?

Or...does the decaying of the loo roll generate enough heat etc. to kill the bacteria that might cause problems?

I ask this because there was a previous thread talking about how schools no longer allow toilet roll insides to be used in crafty things because of the bacteria that might be present, and because we all know about the toothbrush theory.

[Wombat]

Just my opinion, but I reckon any bacteria on the toilet roll would be well and truly swamped by the bacteria in the soil/potting mix etc.

I think people are being overcautious again, driven as usual by the legal fraternity - want to get sued!

Nev

[the.fee.fairy]

ah, good point. i forgot about the bacteria in soil!!

[Muddypause]

what about traces of faecal matter on toilet roll insides?

I suppose it must be a sad fact that Blue Peter can no longer show children how to make things out of empty toilet rolls. But I remember using them in school projects, and I've planted stuff in them, and I add them to the compost bin. And I've probably collected them from the bathroom to put somewhere else, and then <gasp> not washed my hands afterwards.

I mean, you'd have to be pretty careless to get faecal matter on the roll inards, wouldn't you? I suppose it could possibly get there when a pre-washed hand changes the empty roll for a full one, but that's fairly indirect contact, unless you're having some sort of bathroom catastrophe.

I believe it is possible for plants to pick up pathogens and such like, and thereby cause them to be ingested, and it may be an more serious issue when using unrotted manure (animal or human).

But I reckon, on balance, when talking about toilet roll tubes, there must be much greater danger from normal contact with clothing, bedding, door handles, the grips of the supermarket trolly, the public library shelves, the bus seats, the change you get in the butchers, the person who coughs behind you in the lift, your lover's body, the stranger you just shook hands with ...

I can't get to grips with the concept that we should aspire to a sterile environment.

[the.fee.fairy]

Oh, i agree fully!

I only go thinking about the subject becuase i read about sterilising your pots before planting ( admit, i never do this) and then i got thinking about planting in toilet rolld and the faecal splash efect from the toilet...then...well, you know how your brain works when its bored!!

[Bonniegirl]

I owned and ran a pre-school back in the UK and we were advised to stop using them in junk modelling, after some feedback from parents we decided to keep them!

A question from me! When loo rolls middles get wet, they unravel how do you prevent this from happening? Do you put a whole heap of them together in deep trays??

[Cassiepod]

I stacked mine together in a loaf tin when I started off runner beans admittedly it was only seven but made them very portable for hardening off It doesn't need to be terribly deep

[wulf]

I'm inclined to entirely ignore piffling worries about faecal matter on the inside of toilet roll tubes. Here's a conundrum for the hygine conscious: you do your business, you wipe up, you turn on the tap, you wash your hands thoroughly with soap and hot water... and then you probably touch the tap again shortly afterwards!

Personally, I make my temporary pots out of newspaper - roll a strip round a small, straight-sided glass; fold the top in and press down; gently extract the glass; fill with soil and probably put in a tray with enough other pots so that they support each other.

Wulf

[Annpan]

I change poopy nappies all day, I change them, dress the baby again, pick her up, put her in her play pen, leave the room, enter the bathroom, wash my hands, then return to the baby touching exactly the same things I did on the way to wash my hands. - The baby now being of the age that she likes putting her hands there aswell "ooh what are you doing mummy can I help?"

Fee, it is fine (maybe a little healthy) to put up with the tinyest amount of fecal matter. Please don't worry about it, you'll end up obsessive compulsive - which is no laughing matter.

On the other hand my sister works at a nursery school in a rough, deprived and crime ridden area (half the kid's parents are in jail for killing the other half's parents - the ones that aren't in jail, are too out of it to remember they have kids) I wouldn't want any of those kids being given loo rolls from their houses to play with - but whos to say that it is not all on their toys anyway. But I'd imagine in most situations it would be fine, no risk of 'contamination'. It is more harmful to most people to live in a sterile environment than in one with some natural dirt in it.

[Muddypause]

I only go thinking about the subject becuase i read about sterilising your pots before planting ( admit, i never do this)

I never do it either - sometimes I never even wash then out. But I think this is more to do with not letting plant diseases develop, which will affect the harm the plant, rather than the passing on of human pathogens.

[Wombat]

I only go thinking about the subject becuase i read about sterilising your pots before planting ( admit, i never do this)

I never do it either - sometimes I never even wash then out. But I think this is more to do with not letting plant diseases develop, which will affect the harm the plant, rather than the passing on of human pathogens.

I must admit I DO do this, it was the way we were taught to do things in plant propagation at tech. All of my seedling punnets get washed in (quaternary ammonium) disinfectant solution between uses. Stew is right, you run the risk of a build up of organsims that cause damping off and such like, it is to protect the young, tender seedlings and give them a fighting chance.

Nev

[red]

I wouldn't worry about the hygiene regarding toilet roll inners as they are my own family toilet rolls - and you can just worry too much.

the advantage of using toilet roll tubes over making your own paper pots is firstly you have to do something with the tubes anyway, and secondly they have no bottom, so things like parsnips dont hit a barrier which they wont like.

I packed the tubes into a saved plastic fruit punnet thing, filled them with potting compost - some when down the sides too but that holds it all in place and sowed away.

jury is still out on how it works but so far the seeds i sowed direct have not germinated and my toilet roll parsnips are now planted out.

[red]

oh and I forgot to say, when my son was in play group we used to collect toilet roll tubes for making things and organisers would give the tubes a blast in the microwave to kill and lurgies. I think its overkill, but ifyou were concerned.. theres a thought.

[Wombat]

I have used them to good effect, so long as you don't keep 'em too long and they disintegrate. I currently use about 100mm long sections of the inside roll from a plotter paper roll. they are about 50mm in diameter and about 4-5mm thick so last pretty well and then I plant seedling, tube and all. works for me!

Nev