good question...it coud be because theres radiation in the water?? just a long shot :)

Because enough boiling water kills most living things. :) If you let it cool to room temperature, it's just ordinary water, it won't kill the plant ... but plants need some nutrients as well as water ("plant food") so if you're only giving it water, it will eventually die.

I do not know why- but I know for a fact by observing my own seed experiment that microwaving water does indeed effect the outcome of plant growth by dwarfing the root system. My experiment did not go long enough to kill a plant. Another experiment with plant food and only microwaved water might be interesting. The effects were more obvious when the experiment was with larger seeds that need larger root systems (cucumbers) to support the growing plant. The effects were not obvious in radish seeds. Which I believe is because the seeds are smaller and the plant is fast growing with a less intensive root system. This hypothesis needs further testing. My experiment with cucumber seeds-- I grew 8 cucumber seeds in nylon covered peat pots. 4 were watered with water that was heated and boiled on the stove (20 minutes in a stainless steel pot) and 4 were watered with water that had been microwaved (20 minutes in a glass jar). The water was cooled and saved in separate clean glass jars with lids. As the plants sprouted and the roots grew through the nylon it became apparent that the root structure was dwarfed in the 4 plants that received the cooled microwaved water. The plants were slightly smaller and did not look as healthy. By day 13 the roots that were showing were very fine like tiny pinworms. The roots were shorter and there were significantly less roots poking through the nylon mesh. The 4 plants that received the cooled boiled water were more vibrant looking. The roots by day 13 were significantly thicker, significantly longer and there were significantly more roots poking through the nylon mesh. My concern is if this much damage was done to the developing baby plant imagine what type of significant damage we may be experiencing on a cellular level in our bodies by constantly eating and drinking microwaved foods. I think it would be interesting to design a test with several small rodents feeding and watering with foods and water that had been microwaved vs. heated by stove. It would have to be an animal with a short life span and one that would not get sick eating heated/ cooked foods such as cooked vegetables. And compare how the animals grow, or fatten, the animal's general health, their hair, and their life spans.

IT'S RADIATION IN THE WATER! duh!!!!!!!!!!!

I have to ask, why would you microwave the water you are watering plants with in the first place?

I just did a LOT of research on this after talking to a friend who won't use microwaves (her choice..I'm not gonna stop her). But I wanted to be intelligent and make an educated choice for myself. Here are some great websites for info on this: http://statsmadeeasy.blogspot.com/2006/09/experimental-proof-that-microwaved.html http://www.eclecticscience.net/experiments/001-microwave-plants/index.html http://statsmadeeasy.blogspot.com/2006/09/experimental-proof-that-microwaved.html http://greenerside.typepad.com/my_weblog/2006/04/does_microwaved.html http://www.straightdope.com/columns/050506.html There are lots more, but I spent hours researching this, and these were some of the best. As I always tell everyone...do your research, and don't forward emails until you know if the content is true or not!!! (so you don't end up looking foolish)

Oops...somehow I made a foolish mistake!!!! I included one website twice, and left out my favorite: http://www.snopes.com/science/microwave/plants.asp (I'm not afraid to admit it...I'm not PERFEKT!! haha)

Boiling hot water will kill any plant. Otherwise, there is no difference in the water you would normally use and microwaved water.

Because microwaved water is devoid of all nutients and has high levels of radiation will stay active after it has been emitted. Radiation levels of microwaved foods and water are much higher than that of conventiona; X-rays and similar to the stupid chemotherapy machines. :)