For many gardeners, peat moss is a trusted soil helper. It is often marketed as one of the best soil amendments and is frequently used in DIY soil mixes. It improves soil water-holding capacity, ...

Peat moss is popular in gardens because it holds water, adds air to soil, and keeps nutrients from washing away. Harvesting peat moss harms slow-growing peat bogs, releases carbon, and damages fragile ...

What is peat-free compost? Peat was once seen as a cheap and plentiful material that gardeners found easy to use. However, peat harvesting releases huge amounts carbon dioxide into the atmosphere and ...

"You've heard of 'tree-huggers' protecting woodlands, We 'bog-trotters' love the wetlands." The words of agile ecologist Andrew McBride, from the Land and Habitats consultancy, as he strides across a ...

I’ve always had a soft spot for bogs. Some of the happiest days of my childhood were spent exploring the Gower Peninsula’s mires and marshes. They gave me my first intimations of the fittedness, the ...

The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) has committed to going completely “peat-free” by 2025 and is calling on gardeners across the UK to do the same. Peatlands play an important role in acting as ...

Plans to dig out large amounts of Scotland’s precious peat from a landowner’s estate near Edinburgh look set to go ahead despite widespread opposition from conservationists and government. A loophole ...

The harvesting and processing of sphagnum moss was carried out on an industrial scale during World Wars One and Two The UK's peat bogs and fenlands played a major role during times of conflict but ...

Sphagnum moss farming may give us a source of around 5-7cm of moss per year and may provide at least some material to add to peat-free composts. Experiments are ongoing, but it's hoped that moss can ...

The UK's peat bogs and fenlands played a major role during times of conflict but they have been often overlooked or forgotten, a conference will be told. Delegates to a three-day gathering in ...