Going peat free

 As the snowdrops break out in bloom, the daffodil shoots show and the seed catalogues drop on the mat our thoughts are turning to spring, that is just around the corner.  What will we grow?  What seeds do we need?  What compost will we grow them in?

This is the last year of retail sales of peat, with a ban on retail peat sales coming in 2024.  At last you may say!  Peat accumulates in waterlogged bogs at the rate of about 1mm per year, so it takes a 1,000 years to grow a metres depth of peat and yet we are getting through 3 million cubic metres of peat a year (DEFRA figure), nearly two-thirds of that being through retail sales of peat.  Peat holds more carbon than all the other carbon stores combined.  They are also a biodiversity hot-spot too, providing a home to countless types of plants and animal species

Why not make this year you only buy peat free compost?  There are an increasing number of peat free composts available as retailers prepare for the coming ban.  If you have a Which? subscription you will have access to the latest best buy guides that have just been published.

The bad news is that a ban on the use of peat by the horticultural industry is not expected until about 2030, so plants being sold in garden centres will often be grown in peat.  Peat is not fertile, it is only made fertile through the addition of fertiliser after it is harvested.  It is just a growing medium, so the creation of an alternative growing medium, with added fertiliser, is perfectly possible.  Peat use is more about cost (it’s cheap) than its performance comparted to peat free alternatives.

When buying plants this year why not check to see what compost they are grown in?  One of our most powerful campaigning tools is to decide how we spend our money.  It’s time to start checking the small print on that plant label and if it isn’t there start asking the retailer how the plants are grown. The power to change the horticulture industry over to peat free alternative composts is in our hands.

Lastly have you ever considered what compost our food is grown in?  It may surprise you to know that some foods, e.g. mushrooms, are grown on peat based compost. Where possible why not try and find out how your food is grown and steer clear of peat grown food?