Alternatives to Peat for the Garden

What is Peat?

This reliable growing medium has played a major role in the horticultural industry since the 1 950's. It is undeniable - peat is a wonderstuff: cheap, sterile, lightweight and pleasant to handle. It also has good water and air holding qualities. But for the last fifteen or so years argument has been raging between peat producers and conservationists as to the long term effects of its extraction.

Peat forms in very wet or waterlogged habitats such as raised bogs, where the dead vegetation is in effect preserved rather than decomposed and form peat. Moss, or sphagnum peat is formed in raised bogs.

The raised bogs in the Irish midlands are of greatest interest to peat extractors because they can be many metres deep. They are also the ones conservationists are most concerned about.

A fast-disappearing resource, they provide rich habitats for rare flowers, insects and birds, and sometimes preserve important archaeological remains.

Theoretically a living peat bog can regenerate at about 1 5mm (0.75in) per year. Unfortunately, large-scale modern production has made this unlikely, because the land is drained before the extraction.

Not only is recolonisation by the native flora and fauna remote, but the delicate and complex water tables in adjacent undrained areas are also put under threat.

Peat-free Alternatives You Can Try?

Coconuts to . . . . .

Coir for the garden. Waste recycled.

As a mulch to conserve moisture and suppress weeds - you could try bark, spent mushroom compost, composted garden waste or leaf mould.

As a soil improver - products based on wood-waste, spent mushroom compost, composted garden waste, leaf mould or well-rotted farmyard manure.

As a growing medium - a good quality coir or leaf mould compost for seeds or cuttings or one based on wood waste for pricking out and potting up.

Benefits of Peat-Free Composts?

The recycling of organic waste can create valuable compost and help solve waste disposal problems; but it also does more. It contributes to the conservation of one of Ireland's last wilderness areas - our boglands.

In a survey of attitudes to the environment conducted by the Department of the Environment (1996) the litter problem was seen to be of greatest concern. A large majority also said that they would be willing to separate refuse for collection into materials that can be recycled and those that cannot.

Waste disposal continues to be a matter of great public concern with opposition to both land filling and incineration regularly voiced. Almost everybody in Ireland contributes to the growing waste stream and so must bear a share in the responsibility for what is produced. However, few communities volunteer to have a waste disposal facility in their locality.

Waste-prevention has been recognised worldwide as a priority objective to reduce the pressure on the environment from production and consumption processes, thus the setting up of the Local Agenda 21 agreement in 1992.

It is now recognised that the quantities of waste produced in Ireland are unsustainable and so too is the manner in which they are disposed of.

It is estimated that between 37 and 38 million tonnes of solid waste are generated each year in Ireland. The Department of the Environment estimates that in the past decade the total quantity of waste consigned to local authority landfills increased by over 30% (1994). 12% of waste is household and 42% of household waste is organic.

The primary route of disposal of household and commercial waste in Ireland is consigned to landfills. Nearly 70% of all solid waste produced in Ireland is land filled. A total of 4% is either recycled or re-used.

A large percentage of the waste stream in Ireland is likely to be disposed of in the landfills for the foreseeable future.

It is now known that there are many potential environmental problems associated with the land filling of waste. These include potential contamination of ground and surface waters by leachate, the generation and migration of landfill gases, the contamination of landfill and aesthetic nuisances.

A total of 125 landfill sites were in operation in Ireland in 1994. Many of the landfills currently in operation will reach their maximum capacity and will close in the medium term.

Theoretically 70-80% of household waste can be recycled or re-used. The Department of the Environment estimate that only 4% of the household and commercial waste generated in Ireland is currently recycled.

Regular collection of household and commercial waste costs local authorities £23.5 million per 880,000 tonnes of refuse (1984). One of the principle ways in which this cost can be reduced is by reducing the amount of waste presented for collection. This also reduces potential for environmental degradation and the exploitation of non-renewable resources.

Making compost is good for the environment because it:
· Saves peatland wildlife
· Reduces pollution from landfill
· Recycles one person's waste into another's resource
· Cuts down on back garden burn-ups
· Discourages illegal dumping of garden waste
· Encourages wildlife
· Enriches the soil
· Raises awareness of environmental issues within the community
· Helps local authorities to fulfill their commitment to Local Agenda 21
· Save money

Alternatives Available in Ireland?

Commercially Produced Peat Free Products and where to get them

How to make your own home made garden compost; leaf mould and recycle your organic kitchen waste is a wormery

IPCC composting & wildlife Gardening workshops

Composting schemes around the country