Two of the UK's leading gardening-related organisations have concluded from trials that viable alternatives to peat are available to gardeners.
The Royal Horticultural Society (
RHS) and the National Trust conducted trials at a number of their nationally renowned gardens. They found that for most gardening purposes, alternatives to peat-based compost performed just as well (and in some cases exceeded) the traditional peat-based products.
Both organisations support the widely held view that gardeners should refrain from using peat where at all possible, recognising that the horticultural and garden industries have been responsible for denuding lowland peat bogs - one of our most endangered natural habitats - over the past few decades.