Compost. Don’t call it dirt or mud - it demands much more respect than that. Did you know there’s more life in a single handful of compost than there are people on earth? That stuff you put in your pots and hanging baskets contains billions of microscopic bacteria and organisms that form the bedrock of all life on earth, and it’s very precious indeed.
Just like Caitlin, you can proudly make your own fresh and warm homemade compost from vegetable kitchen waste, grass clippings, pruned cuttings, and leaves, but we’ll save that composting lesson for another time. For now, we at Team Outsiding think it’s important to get your head around some of the different ingredients that make up peat-free compost, using Adam’s top tips. Trust us, it’s really cool. No, honestly.
First up, let’s tackle the peat vs peat-free debate.
Peat is a type of soil, but it’s more than that: It’s a ten-thousand-year-old superfood for plants, containing loads of nutrition, moisture retention, and the perfect mix of healthy bacteria and fungi that makes growing plants easy. It really is the good stuff. BUT it comes at a cost to the earth, it takes thousands of years to form and digging it up destroys precious peatlands that store carbon and support wildlife.
So nowadays, as we’re more environmentally tuned-in and we like to have nice things, the consensus is for domestic gardeners (that’s you) to switch to a more sustainable, peat-free compost, just like Adam did thirty years ago. This way you’re making your garden look good AND helping the planet.
Side note, we’re talking about compost that goes in your pots and containers, NOT the soil in the ground – the two are different.
Adam: ‘New greenhouse, new garden, there won’t be too much going in the ground, so you’ll be putting a lot of stuff in containers.’
So, let’s fill those containers with good, hard-working, conscience-clear compost. This is what’s on Adam’s peat-free compost meze platter, and what each item does:
Peat-free compost – A growing medium made from sustainable materials such as coir or bark, instead of peat.
Horticultural sand – A coarse, washed sand that improves drainage and prevents compost from becoming too dense or waterlogged. It’s different from builders’ sand, don’t use that.
Horticultural grit – Small, hard stone particles that create air pockets in compost, improving drainage and reducing compaction.
Composted bark – A partially decomposed organic material that adds structure to compost, helping it retain moisture while allowing excess water to drain away.
Perlite – A lightweight, expanded volcanic rock that improves aeration and drainage without adding much weight, making it a lighter alternative to gravel.
Topsoil – The nutrient-rich upper layer of soil that provides minerals, beneficial microbes and a natural growing environment for plant roots.
Vermiculite – A heat-expanded mineral that absorbs and holds water and nutrients, releasing them gradually to plant roots while also improving aeration.
These elements can be combined to make a reliable compost for your pots and containers. Think of compost as a recipe, where each ingredient has a specific job, and it’s the combination of materials that creates the ideal environment for roots to grow.
Caitlin: ‘Is it a clever idea to fill the bottom of a large pot with other things like polystyrene, or rocks, to save compost?’
You can put rocks, or crocks (not the things you wear on your feet; crocks are bits of broken pots) in the bottom of a container, and these will aid drainage and stop roots from sitting in water, which most plants don’t like. Heavy items like rocks at the bottom of pots will also weigh down the container, meaning it’s unlikely to be toppled over by a stray football or a fat dog. We wouldn’t recommend using polystyrene, though. See previous comments about saving the planet.
Once you master the art of making good compost, the rest will be easy. We hope. For now, open a bottle of wine and raise a toast to going peat-free. Save the cork for later.
Do you make your own compost? Let us know and share your recipe in the comments, and keep up with our latest episodes of Outsiding here.
