Peat-free portal for industry

Discover the latest research, resources and recommendations to assist your transition to peat-free, as well as details of free workshops and events for growers

NEWS: Nursery trials reveal peat-free doesn’t need more water

New data from RHS and industry trials has shown that peat-free mixes often retain water better than those containing peat. Discover the latest results-based insights on peat-free irrigation

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Get in touch

If you would like to ask for advice on your transition to peat-free, or arrange a call or nursery visit, you can get in touch with the RHS Transition to Peat-Free Fellowship team here.

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What the RHS is doing

RHS gardens are already 98% peat-free. We have pledged to become 100% peat-free in all our operations by the end of 2025, including shows, gardens and retail. We stopped selling peat-based compost in 2019, and from 2026 all plants sold in our retail outlets and on display at our Shows and Gardens will be peat-free. 

The largest peat-free research project globally, the RHS Transition to Peat-Free fellowship is developing solutions to help the horticultural industry sustainably transition away from peat. This five-year collaborative project brings together government, growers and growing media manufacturers to research sustainable alternatives to peat in large-scale commercial settings. The project is led by dedicated research fellow Dr Raghavendra Prasad and includes events and resources for professional growers.


More on the RHS Transition to Peat-Free project

RHS peat policy

Peatlands are the world’s largest terrestrial carbon store and provide valuable ecosystems for wildlife. We share the concerns about the damage peat extraction does to our natural environment and will continue to push for the end of peat use in horticulture.

RHS peat policy

Bogs not bags

Keeping peat in bogs – and not in bags – is a crucial part of the fight against climate change. Here’s why it’s essential for us to work together to develop sustainable solutions and leave peat in the ground.

  • Peatlands store over twice as much carbon as all the world’s forests combined, despite covering a land area ten times smaller. In fact, peat bogs store twice as much carbon as all the vegetation on the planet put together. This makes them the most efficient carbon sink on land.
  • A hectare of healthy peat just 30cm deep stores more carbon than a hectare of rainforest, including all its plants and soils. Peat bogs are often much more than 30cm deep.
  • It takes 100 years to form just 10cm of peat in a peat bog. Extractors can take up to 22 metres of depth at once (=22,000 years to form).

  • Unlike in trees, where carbon is cycled relatively quickly, healthy peat bogs can store carbon for thousands of years.
  • Peat bogs act like a sponge, absorbing intense rainfall and releasing it in a regulated way to reduce flooding.
  • The UK is one of the world’s top 10 countries in terms of peatland area, with nearly 5 million acres.
  • As the habitat is lost, so are the rare species that depend on it.
  • At least 80% of our peatlands have been damaged. We have to protect what remains.

Get involved

The Royal Horticultural Society is the UK’s leading gardening charity. We aim to enrich everyone’s life through plants, and make the UK a greener and more beautiful place.