People will have to learn to adapt; just like when it comes to water use, pesticides and herbicides, and a lot of other things we don't even know about yet. Last year my seedlings were a bit hit and miss so this year I'll be trying something different but that's part of my enjoyment of gardening.
Our commercial nursery now operates peat free as the business is striving toward a more environmentally friendly model. We tried three different peat free products in bulk and settled on one that was a kind of shredded wood/bracken concoction. The guys hated it at first but seem to have got used to it. We actually ran some trials and the peat free stuff performed better as a containerisation medium with notable increases in vegetative growth.
I should add that we only work with semi-mature trees and large specimens so its a bit easier for us to adjust to peat free as we're doing very little propagating, liner growing, seeding etc.
On a domestic level for more hands-on gardening peat is still king in my opinion. Better stock up before 2024!
Clarification - I am of course 100% in favour of the ban.
There are plenty of commercial nurseries who propagate from seed and cuttings using peat-free, it's probably a different product to the wood/bracken mixture you've had success with as a container medium.
Suitable peat free products are out there, so there's no need to worry about the ban. Availability of the really good peat free compost is also bound to improve once the ban is in effect.
Turns out I'm mistaken! We switched back to a 5% grit 40% peat potting mix last month.
I’ve used peat free Homebase and New Horizon this year. Plants have grown strongly in both. I don’t think either is worse than peat mpc, rather they’re different.
I have gone back to bare root roses, and open-ground grown rhododendrons. In both clay or sandy soils, the roots stay within the peat-free former pot-shape and need 2 years or more before they are weaned.
No question, just an observation.
location: Surrey Hills, England, ex-woodland acidic sand. "Have nothing in your garden that you don't know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful."
I have been using a compost with John Innes but can’t remember which one .Have found that you get what you pay for , unfortunately, the days of getting cheap compost are gone because if it’s cheap it’s usually rubbish compost .Have bought a container and have begun to make my own ,seems to be the only way forward ,although ,thinking about it ,my parents never bought compost back in the50 s ,they just used garden soil ,tea leaves and liquinure .
I have gone back to bare root roses, and open-ground grown rhododendrons. In both clay or sandy soils, the roots stay within the peat-free former pot-shape and need 2 years or more before they are weaned.
No question, just an observation.
Hi Bede,
That sounds more like an issue with the planting hole.
If they're bare root won't the site soils do? I tend to just mulch over the top once planted. At a stretch if its really lumpy and i can't break it up i'll mix just a tiny bit of John Innes3 into the hole.
We did notice here on site that the peat free stuff was heavily enriched with fertiliser, presumably to enhance its effectiveness and impress the users. Perhaps this is what's discouraging your roses/rhodos to root out?!
Posts
Says it all really.
"Have nothing in your garden that you don't know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful."
They do it all the time with posters, so i just put them on ignore.
No question, just an observation.
"Have nothing in your garden that you don't know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful."
That sounds more like an issue with the planting hole.
If they're bare root won't the site soils do? I tend to just mulch over the top once planted. At a stretch if its really lumpy and i can't break it up i'll mix just a tiny bit of John Innes3 into the hole.
We did notice here on site that the peat free stuff was heavily enriched with fertiliser, presumably to enhance its effectiveness and impress the users. Perhaps this is what's discouraging your roses/rhodos to root out?!