Arabidopsis thaliana was exposed to five different soil treatments: Vermicompost, ‘Food Waste’ Compost, Potting soil (4:1 Promix BX/Perlite), Autoclaved Vermicompost and Autoclaved ‘Food Waste’ compost. Soil treatments A and B were tested for the presence of bacteria using MacConkey and Phenylethyl Alcohol media. All plants were watered on Tuesdays and Fridays and no longer received water after one month. Leaf number, stem height and length of the largest leaf were measured before and after dehydration stress. Once the dehydration stress began, the majority of the plants did not survive with the exception of the vermicompost
