Phasing Out Peat As Growing Media – Is It Possible?

Summary

In areas with a limited outdoor growing season, pre-cultivation is an option. Pre-cultivation may also be an advantage in organic growing in order to give vegetables and herbs a head start on weeds. Good quality seed and transplanting media suitable for organic growing is of utmost importance for a satisfactory economic outcome. There is also an increasing demand for peat free or peat reduced products. In tests conducted by The Norwegian Centre for Organic Agriculture (NORSØK) it was shown that commercial products, both peat based and peat free, don’t always perform as intended resulting in low quality transplants. Some self-made products based on horse manure and leaf mould were tested, a few of them produced transplants of good quality. Some modifications need to be done, especially in order to reduce weed seeds.