Peat moss, also called bog moss or sphagnum moss, any of more than 150300 species of plants in the subclass sphagnidae, of the division bryophyta, comprising the family sphagnaceae, which contains one genus, sphagnum. Pindstrup peat moss provides water retention and air porosity for a wide range of uses. Peat plays an integral role in most potting mixes because the organic material is relatively inert in that it does not harbor diseases and insects but. How to organically prepare peat moss for container raised bed gardens the rusted garden 20 duration. Peat moss is a gardening staple as a soil conditioner with canada supplying over 80% of the peat used in horticulture worldwide. Peat and especially peat moss is the perfect medium for growing plants in pots. Peat moss does have special characteristics that make it a better choice when used in small amounts as part of seed starting mixtures. Grower grade white has a fibrous consistency that improves aeration and increases drainage to promote plant root development. It is a light brown color and has a fine, dry texture. This is due to peats high capacity to hold water, air and nutrients, as well as its adjustable ph, light weight, low salt content, homogeneous composition, high structural stability, and lack of. The antifungal property of peat mosses has been reported by many researchers. Since the 1950s, sphagnum peat moss has been a common ingredient in potting soils sold in the united states.
Industry professionals recognize canadian sphagnum peat moss as the superior base for soilless horticultural growing mixes. Our western, central and eastern bogs all produce grower grade white peat moss. Sphagnum farming the production of sphagnum biomass on rewetted bogs. Our various grades of sphagnum peat moss fine, professional and coarse are adapted to all professional growing needs. Sphagnum peat moss is usually sold in compressed bales or bags. Ponds in this restored bog are essential to the development of peat. Antibacterial effect of phenolic compounds from peat moss and the polysaccharide chitosan. Cutting and processing of peat encyclopedia of life. Preliminary substrate mixtures including peat moss sphagnum. Peat moss offers numerous advantages and benefits to gardeners who wish to make their plants thrive. Unesco eolss sample chapters coal, oil shale, natural bitumen, heavy oil and peat vol.
It is relatively inexpensive and free of contaminates such as seeds, pests and diseases. It has a high pore volume, holds moisture and air well, has a stable structure and the low ph is easily adjusted. It may be sold as green and living,or brown and dried,and is used for. Superpeat is a custom blend of sphagnum peat and earthlife premium compost. Peat moss is an absorbent material so its ideal for many different garden uses, such as creating fertile soil and helping plants grow faster and healthier. Peat moss is a fibrous material that forms when the mosses and other living materials decompose in peat bogs. The highest growth rate, up to more than 40 centimeters per summer, occurs in sphagnum cuspidatum and s. Oftentimes, they are called sphagnum peat moss because it is mostly composed of sphagnum which is a type of moss. Pdf peat is a spongy substance which is an effect of incomplete decomposition of. Create raised beds and fill them with lots of compost, peat, perlite and vermiculite. Used either fresh or dried, it is typically used to line hanging plant baskets or other plant containers. Hypnum peat is largely composed of visible leaves and stems of a variety of hypnum moss species.
The peat moss is commercially harvested or mined depending on which side of the debate youre on from these bogs. Peat mossorganic product mined from decomposing plants, most often mosses,in a boggy area. Gardeners hail peat moss for its water retention capabilities, too. Pdf peat moss has historically been a key component of soilfree substrates in the greenhouse and nursery industries. The difference between peat moss and the compost gardeners make in their backyard is that peat moss is composed mostly of moss, and the decomposition happens without the presence of air, slowing the rate of decomposition. Ive been googling for an hour trying to find a measurement of how much peat moss to use per measure of soil to lower the soils ph from 7 to 6. Sphagnum peat moss is usually dried and sterilized after harvest. It absorbs and holds 10 to 20 times its dry weight in water.
In winter, however, the weight of the snow blanket compresses the waterlogged parts of. Each year the peat moss industry harvests only 40,000 acres of peat moss mostly for horticultural use. Berger offers different grades of carefully selected sphagnum peat moss to suit every horticultural need. Sphagnum mossseveral species of moss that inhabit bogs. Note also that peat moss doesnt provide any nutrients. Is sphagnum moss peat moss whats the difference between. The stringy and spongy structure of peat moss also aerates the compost and keeps it moist. Antibacterial effect of phenolic compounds from peat moss. A longterm study on producing peat moss biomass sustainably article pdf available in ecological engineering 74 january 2015 with 1,869 reads.
The most effective way to boost compost with peat moss is to add a 1inch thick layer of peat moss between every 4inch thick layer of compost material. All of our professional peat grades are authorized for organic production. Canada has over 270 million acres of peat bogs which produce peat moss. If you have a lot of peat moss handy, consider following mel bartholomews square foot garden plan. Sure, peat moss is a thirsty medium, but once its completely dry, it takes a lot of water to get it wet and hydrated again. It contains less than 5% moisture, making this one of the best absorbents on fine sheens or concrete stains. I have been using peat moss and new top soil to bring an old flowershrub area back to life for fresh plantings this upcoming spring in chicagoland.
The truth about peat moss in your garden and 5 eco. In support of the industry effort to implement safety management systems at airlines, boeing has. The organic heat treated peat moss is a hydrophopic, biodegradable granular that absorbs 15 times its weight in hydrocarbons. It is typically mixed with white specks of perlite, a. Adsorption characteristics of cu and ni on irish peat moss. It grows best in humus rich soil and another one suggests using peat moss i will be receiving my plants in the next week or so and i do see both humus and peat moss at my local store i am curious what exactly they are before i buy is humus some type of soil or manure. Pdf substitution of peat moss with softwood biochar for soilfree. The carbon in the worlds peatlands may constitute 15% or. Peat moss is often recommended as an amendment for all types of soil.
One of the valuable applications for peat moss is the traditional use in food preservation taskila et al. Example application of procedural event analysis tool peat. It is a very popular soil amendment because of its ability to help sandy soil hold moisture, and helps clay soil loosen up. The combination of peat and clay can be beneficial for many plants but understanding the. If thats your goal, rely on compost or other amendments to do the job. It takes several millennia for peat moss to form, and peat bogs gain less than a millimeter in depth every year.
But i can find no instruction about how much to use. Sunshine grower grade white is the most popular of our professional peat moss line. It offers the soil enhancing and moisture holding benefits of peat with the microbial life and slow release nutrients of compost. Is peat moss and peat humus the same thing for gardening. Blonde peat moss, produced from block and mill harvested peat, then screened at the factory. Analytical details of professional grades of peat moss. Properly applying peat moss to soil mixes and as an amendment is important for the success of your garden. Peat moss has been reported to comprise a rich array of polar functional groups such as alcohol, aldehydes, carboxylic acids, ketones, and phenolic hydroxides, which are suitable for sorption or. The main thing you need to keep in mind is that all depends on the reason you wish to use peat moss in the first place. Analytical details of professional grades of peat moss test peat moss grade. Clicking thru your site and just noticed a small blurb about peat moss doing funky. Peat moss 100 exposure limits of peat moss dust osha pel acgih tlv respirable dust 5 mgm3 respirable particules 3 mgm3 total dust 15 mgm3 inhalable particules 10 mgm3 section iv emergency and first aid measures inhalation. The taxonomy of sphagnum species remains controversial, with various botanists accepting quite different numbers of species. Photo courtesy of canadian sphagnum peat moss associationnothing is as simple as it seems.
Clay is one of the most difficult soil textures to work with, requiring more space between the grains of soil to allow air and water to move through quickly. You will apply it differently depending on how you plan to use it, but for all applications it is important to wet the peat moss before adding it into the soil. The procedural event analysis tool peat is a tool for investigating flight crew operations system failures and is part of a set of reactive tools developed to augment an airline safety management system. How to properly seed your lawn, addressing tree roots, making a patch mix. The process of decomposition to form peat moss is very slow and it happens without the presence of air. The characteristics of the peat may vary slightly depending on the species of plant that was growing in that area. Many of my plants this year like ph 6 more or less. Remember, there are many different reasons why someone might want to use peat moss in their. If you do the math that comes to one of every 6,000 acres of peat moss is harvested each year. On the average, the height of peat moss increases by 10 centimeters during a summer season. Sphagnum moss, frequently confused with sphagnum peat moss, is harvested in sheets and pieces from bogs.
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