Predictability with media

In our quest to find the best and most cost effective growing medium, the horticulture industry has looked at many different components and by-products, including: bark, coir, rice hulls, cotton bagasse and compost just to name a few.  The purpose of a growing medium is to provide plants with their basic needs of water, air and nutrients. Sphagnum peat moss is still the undisputed champion growing media component for a wide variety of reasons including its physical and chemical qualities, as well as its versatility and availability.  It is also specifically harvested for horticulture purposes for predictable consistency and not a by-product of other industries.

The primary physical properties that contribute to optimum plant growth are the air porosity and water holding capacity of the growing medium.  Air porosity is the amount of air space remaining after the growing medium has been saturated and allowed to drain. The water retained by the growing medium represents the water-holding capacity. In order to achieve optimum plant growth, plants need a balance of both air and water in the growing medium.  The industry by-products mentioned above can hold too much or not enough water, depending on the proportion used. This can cause plants to be stressed by either staying too wet or too dry.  Sphagnum peat moss continues to be the most reliable base component of growing media. Because of its fibrous spongy texture, it has the ability to hold a lot of water and simultaneously provide structure for air movement. For a natural fiber, Sphagnum peat moss is unique and well suited for horticulture growing media, making it the most preferred component by growers.

The secondary property to consider in plant growth is chemical properties.  The chemical properties of growing media can be influenced by the additives included, such as lime, nutrient charge and any other additives in the mix.  The grower can also impact the chemical properties of the growing media through the addition of fertilizer and the effect of water alkalinity on growing media pH.  The consistent qualities of Sphagnum peat moss make it an ideal growing media component since it has a predictable low pH, low nutrient content and low salt content. Therefore, it is easy to adjust the chemical properties to match those needed by the plants.

The final key advantage of Sphagnum peat moss is its availability.  While peat moss grows at a very slow rate, the yearly harvest rate in Canada is considerably less.  The total area of peat land in Canada is 270 million acres, of which, less than 0.02% is harvested for horticulture purposes.  With proper bog management there is an unlimited supply of good quality Sphagnum peat moss.  Most of the alternative growing medium components have great variability from source to source as well as availability from year to year.

The advantages of Sphagnum peat moss are quite evident. It has ideal air/water properties and consistent chemical properties that can be easily tailored to the needs of specific crops.  Finally, the abundance of Sphagnum peat moss assures there will be a steady, consistent supply far into the foreseeable future.