peat free potting compost
Spring is here .... and with it all of that wonderful anticipation as seeds are sown.
But there is a problem for the sustainable gardener - which growing medium to use?
Last year we moved to using peat free compost. Peat bogs are increasingly threatened habitats and the horticultural industry is denuding the bogs of peat at an alarming rate.
The problem for the gardener is complicated by the fact that peat free composts are simply not as good as their peat based cousins. We have found that germination is not as good and young plants fail to thrive in the way we had become used with peat based composts. Hanging baskets and pots retain water less well in peat free media and the plants are less vigorous.
This year there is a new product on the market. It is West plus peat free multipurpose compost. I understand that it is made from bi-products of the forestry industry.
The compost is quite fibrous as you can see. But so far results are encouraging. Pictured are Feltham First early peas germinating in it.
The drawback is its cost. At £5.99 a bag it is twice the price of other composts.
4 comments:
So glad to see that the peat bog issue is known at least by some! My local organic gardening store (Planet Natural) sells coconut coir instead, but I don't know if there's a compost/ potting soil version.
Hope your new stuff works out, esp. since it's costly!
--Kate
--I've left you a message over at Blotanical...
Kate
I've tried coir based compost and that too has been of poor quality.
I'm hoping that this new, expensive kind that I'm trying will be effective and eventually come down in price.
Launching a high price option in the present economic climate will only attract the most committed or those with the deepest pockets.
Cheers
Rob
Hey Rob, Toby from Gardener's World is trialling peat alternatives. He mentioned Moorland gold which is reclaimed peat from the water water that runs off the moors. There's plenty of links if you google it but the best one i found was this
http://www.organiccompost.org.uk/history.html
you may find it useful
Jayne
Hi Jayne
Thanks for that. Come to think of it, I've seen Moorland Gold in the Organic Gardening Catalogue but always thought it was too expensive.
It may not be, now that I am paying top dollar for West plus. Will look into it.
By the way - your compost is looking good!
Cheers
Rob
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