Peat-free Compost

I found these in just one tub today. Not vine weevil, despite their appearance, they belong to a large golden beetle, Cetonia aurata. Supposedly harmless to plants, don't you believe it! I bought an 'economical' compost from our local DIY store earlier this year, which turned out to be largely chopped-up wood waste with a bit of manure mixed in. The plants haven't done at all well, as water just drains straight through, leaving the top 6" just as dry as it was before watering, while the bottom half is sitting in foul, manure-y water. That was the least of it, though..the second photo is of the remains of a 4-year old begonia tuber...completely hollowed out. These beetles are one of many species here that thrive on old, decaying wood, which is exactly what compost manufacturers are using to replace peat! I'll be mixing my own compost from now on

 

You'd think they'd actually compost the wood before selling it

 

Noisette, most of the mpc available now are poor. We havent really replaced peat with an equally good product.
I usually mix john innes or my own sieved soil with a mpc that appears ok.
I have never seen those grubs before....they look horrendous

 

I'm working on making a peat substitute, gonna take a few years though, anaerobic decomposition involving nettles

 

Well politically/ecologically correct or not, I'll be buying bales of peat and mixing it with sand, perlite, top soil et al.....There is a bit of a backlash going on anyway concerning horticultural use of peat. I believe the RHS have changed their tune a bit on the subject since all the trials proved that there's no effective substitute On the bright side, Wiki claims that these beetles are rare in the UK. Let's hope so!

 

At least you'm not firing your power stations with it Noisette

 

I don't think we should be digging up Scotland's (or anywhere else's) peat bogs for horticultural reasons. It is an ecological disaster to be doing it and I am glad there are restrictions but there need to be more. I buy peat free which is I admit is pretty hit and miss and then add manure, my own compost and sand. It is not very scientific but it works and I get reasonable results. They will only stop using peat in compost if gardeners demand it. Hopefully if people did, the peat free compost makers would up their game and make better more consistent products.

 

There is at least one nursery that uses peat free compost and degradable pots made of coir, so eliminating plastic pots as well. When I went to The Eden Project last month, I came across them. They are one of The Eden Projects suppliers to their shop. I bought a few and they are really healthy plants. When planting you can plant the whole pot as well. It's what I did. So far so good but I think they would not biodegrade in very dry soil. So far they only do herbaceous plants and and herbs. It would be nice to think they are setting a trend which other nurseries will follow. If the demand is there from gardeners, it'll happen. Here is a link:

Mail order eco friendly plants and herbs, great gift collections

 

I've noticed bales of Irish moss peat seem to be more available again, it kind of became a no no for a few years.

 

Tryin to think of the presenter in an 80's wildlife docco who said it was the horticultural equivalent of knocking down St. Paul's Cathedral and using the rubble to line the garden path...

 

Anaerobic decomposition in progress

 

I wondered what that smell was, the prevailing winds are westerlies.

 

@ARMANDII i do not agree with peat fired power stations either! But it is no excuse to say they do it so so can we. Both reasons for peat extraction and destruction of that environment are equally bad IMO. To say I am "led down the propaganda path" is disingenuous. I am a conservationist and try to live responsibly. We all have a part to play in saving our planet that is being destroyed due to human activity. We can choose to use peat or not to use it. I don't know what the figures are for the use of peat in horticulture. I tried to research it once but didn't get very far but the tonnage is huge so definitely contributes to habitat loss on a huge scale.