Peat-free soil can make watering and fertilizing more difficult if it does not contain the right raw materials and fertilizer in the right proportions.
For decades, peat was a generalist in soil for professional and amateur gardeners. Not without reason, because the raw material peat can be adapted relatively easily to the requirements of different plant species in terms of nutrients and pH value. It can also store a lot of water and can be combined very well with other raw materials. If peat is not used as a basic, balancing element, several raw materials, some of which have very different properties, have to be combined. Because currently there is no substitute that can alone replace the unique physical and chemical properties of peat 1 to 1. Mixing peat-free soil therefore requires a high level of technical, scientific and horticultural know-how.
Buy in garden shops
Soil is best bought in garden shops, i.e. in nurseries, tree nurseries and garden centers. This applies in general, of course, to conventional soils, but in particular to peat-free soils. The specialist trade still has a direct line to horticultural practice and plant production, but also to the professional producers of soil. He incorporates many years of experience when it comes to soils and substrates in his offer, such as with the soils from frux. This means that you are in good hands in specialist shops when it comes to quality, service and advice.
Buying high-quality soil from specialist retailers also makes sense because the plants available in nurseries, tree nurseries and garden centers have already been grown in high-quality soil. When repotting or planting out, you should put them back in such soil. This makes it easier for the plants to grow in the new location. Errors caused by poor soil on the valuable plants can usually hardly be reversed.
Organic does not automatically mean peat-free
Organic soil is not the same as peat-free. Only if the soil says "without peat" or similar does it actually contain no peat. You can also look out for ecological seals of approval. Some soils from frux e.gCriteria for the “Nature in the Garden” seal of quality. It distinguishes them for natural gardening because they are peat-free and contain organic fertilizer. Organic fertilizer is gradually converted by microorganisms and its nutrients are made available to the plants as needed.
It's all in the mix
A high-quality soil contains the nutrients required for the respective culture in the right concentration, should be well aerated and crumbly, smell earthy, not tend to waterlogging, absorb water again immediately when it is dry and not sag over time. In order to achieve these positive properties, several raw materials, some of which have very different properties, must be combined.
1. Wood fibers facilitate root formation
A peat-free soil must be loose and fluffy so that the plant roots are supplied with oxygen and can grow he althily. It should therefore contain e.g. wood fibers. Not only do they keep the soil airy, they also make it easier to re-wet after accidental drying out and ensure that the soil hardly compacts, even over the long term.
In order to increase the storage capacity for water and nutrients, a peat-free soil should also contain clay - ideally fresh natural clay. It shows up as a gray color when you spread the earth between your thumb and forefinger. Because fresh natural clay releases the stored water and nutrients to the plants as needed, it compensates for fluctuations in long-lasting drought or heavy rain. In addition, it prevents nutrients from being washed out by watering or rain. It protects plants from nutrient depletion - and because it contains valuable trace elements - also from deficiency diseases.
If peat is no longer used as a base-forming and balancing element in the soil, fresh natural clay plays another key role. It balances the very different properties of the various peat substitutes, e.g. with regard to nutrient content and pH value, buffers peaks and forms the link between the individual components, so to speak.
3. Compost provides nutrients
An important part of soil is also compost. It promotes soil activity, provides nutrients and improves structure. High-quality soils from the garden trade contain RAL quality-assured, ready-rotted substrate compost. He must meet high requirements, e.g. with regard to the s alt andnutrient content, grain size or freedom from plastic. In addition, substrate compost is practically free of weed seeds, pathogens and other harmful organisms. As already mentioned, fresh natural clay is required to reduce its pH value and high s alt content in the soil to a level that is compatible with plants.
Bark humus is a fourth component, particularly of peat-free soils and substrates. It is made from crushed and fermented bark of coniferous trees. Bark humus remains structurally stable for a long time and has a high volume of air, but can hardly store any water. This is buffered by adding coconut pulp.
5. Coconut pulp retains water and improves rewettability
Coconut pith (also cocopeat) is currently still essential in peat-free mixtures. It absorbs water very well, reduces the wetting resistance of soil after severe drying out, and thus causes a more even distribution of water in the soil. However, some coconut pulp has a high s alt content, which in turn has to be compensated for, e.g. with natural clay.
In this video you can see what's inside peat-free soil.
Pre-fertilized soil makes maintenance easier
But not only the combination of raw materials, but also the fertilizer must be adapted to the respective application. Peat-free and conventional soils from specialist shops contain a combination of fertilizers with different durations and modes of action and are sometimes enriched with special nutrients. The initial needs of a plant are met with immediately soluble nutrient s alts that are absorbed very quickly. In the case of fertilizers with a long-term effect, the nutrients are only gradually broken down by the activity of microorganisms. The effect lasts for several weeks. Sustained-release fertilizer, recognizable as small globules in the soil, releases its nutrients over a long period of several months.
When fertilizing, it is less important whether you use a peat-free or peat-rich soil, but rather whether you start with a lightly fertilized propagation soil or put the plants in a more heavily fertilized potting soil with slow-release fertilizer. The type of fertilizer contained - for example organic or mineral - also decides when it needs to be fertilized.
Does the watering behavior change with peat-free soil?
When watering, it is the case that finer structured soils can hold the water better, but are also more likely to become waterloggedtend. Structure-rich soils, on the other hand, drain excess water better, ensure good air exchange in the root area, but sometimes have to be watered more often. In any case, it is an advantage if clay has been mixed into the soil. Due to the high storage capacity for water and nutrients, the clay gives the earth application security, including with a view to the increasingly longer dry phases.