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End of peat based composts: What will replace it?

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Beersmith:
Interesting comments.

I was hoping that quality standards would not be needed. After all, in the UK, distilling spirits is regulated, and must be done to certain standards, but still ranges from basic blended supermarket whisky at £15 a bottle to aged single malt at anything from £40 upwards.

I did wonder if the market for bags of compost was just not big enough to attract new entrants, or the investment and development research needed. That would be unfortunate.

But there is an additional factor. Garden centres and the like also sell huge volumes of plants, shrubs, bushes, trees, houseplants, young vegetable plants, summer bedding, and loads loads more.  That business must dwarf the market for bags of compost. So what will that industry use when the ban kicks in?  If those businesses want to maintain the quality of their retail offer I suspect they will need something much better than the "rubble and twigs" we get under the label "multi purpose". That might kickstart a few changes.

Tee Gee:

--- Quote --- If those businesses want to maintain the quality of their retail offer I suspect they will need something much better
--- End quote ---

I think there could be double standards there already as the garden centre in the next village from me make their own compost but it is ‘Peat based’ so even they will have to go back to the drawing board.

I have been making my own this year to the John Innes recipe and I have used my saved used compost as the loam content and the type of multi-purpose I mentioned in my opening comments has a 60% peat content so I am using this as the peat content of my John Innes mix. I suppose you could describe my compost mix as “ reduced peat”

I am finding it is working quite well! If nothing else it is consistent.

Don’t what I will do when peat is banned perhaps I might have to get it illicitly from the moors that surround me.

BTW My street address is; Moorside Road so that might give you a reason for my thinking.

So instead of dumping things on the moor I would be taking it away.....only kidding!

Beersmith:
Ace,

Your comments make grim reading for amateur gardeners, and that was my main concern when I started the thread. But we may have allies.

The garden centres and the many large wholesale businesses that grow plants to supply them will need to source decent compost to avoid a big hit to their profits. If they provide enough demand someone will try to meet that demand. Perhaps the plant growers will start to produce it themselves.  If they succeed, I suspect they would leap at the chance to make more money by selling to the public.

Beersmith:
Oops.

My error. It seems commercial growers may be allowed several more years using peat. 

Same as always. Laws are only for the little people. Get your income tax wrong by a few quid and HMRC are on you like a ton of bricks. Trouser millions of taxpayer's money and no-one is remotely interested.

pumkinlover:
I was buying Petersfield peat free compost in  bulk at the allotments when I was secretary. It was excellent and a good price.
Since then I've not bought any compost but relied on my own home made till this year when I've emptied out some  very large containers at home so bought some from the Garden Centre.
In some ways the bought in compost resembles the stuff I riddle out of my home made compost!

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