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Using a Steamroom To Sterilize Pallets of Styrofoam Seedling Container Blocks

Lucky Peak Nursery Steamroom

Lucky Peak Nursery near Boise, ID, constructed a new greenhouse facility to grow containerized seedlings (figures 6 and 7). The nursery needed an inexpensive way to sterilize large numbers of styroblocks. The nursery converted a cold storage room into a styroblock sterilization room by piping in low-pressure steam to supply high-humidity heat. A propane boiler supplies steam to heat the room to a constant temperature of 160°F. Operators loaded styroblocks into the room, using a forklift and storage racks (figure 8), treating the styroblocks for several hours to ensure that they were sterilized completely.

[photo] Lucky Peak Nursery near Boise, ID.
Figure 6—The new greenhouse facility at the Forest
Service's Lucky Peak Nursery near Boise, ID.

[photo] Seedlings growing in styroblocks at Lucky Peak Nursery.
Figure 7—Containerized seedlings growing in styroblocks in
the new greenhouse facility at the Forest Service's
Lucky Peak Nursery near Boise, ID.

[photo] Styroblocks on racks inside sterilization room.
Figure 8—Styroblocks are loaded on storage racks
inside the sterilization room.

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