Ads
related to: is peat good for soil protection in plants and vegetables and food web
Search results
Results from the WOW.Com Content Network
[citation needed] Peat is discouraged as a soil amendment by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, England, since 2003. [32] While bark or coir-based peat-free potting soil mixes are on the rise, particularly in the UK, peat is still used as raw material for horticulture in some other European countries, Canada, as well as parts of the United States.
It can also lower the pH of the soil surface, making it useful as a mulch under acid loving plants. However, peat bogs are a valuable wildlife habitat, and peat is also one of the largest stores of carbon (in Britain, out of a total estimated 9952 million tonnes of carbon in British vegetation and soils, 6948 million tonnes carbon are estimated ...
The use of peat is controversial since the harvesting of peat moss from peatlands (which includes unique habitats such as bogs and fens) can degrade these peatlands. Peatlands are home to a diverse range of plant and animal species. Peat also has a very slow accumulation rate, as little as 1mm per year, so they take a long time to regenerate.
A peatland is a type of wetland whose soils consist of organic matter from decaying plants, forming layers of peat. Peatlands arise because of incomplete decomposition of organic matter, usually litter from vegetation, due to water-logging and subsequent anoxia . [ 1 ]
Soil provides raw materials for human use and impacts human health directly. The composition of human food reflects the nature of the soil in which it was grown. An example of soil as a source of raw material can be found in ancient ceramic production. The Maya ceramics showed traits inherited from soils and sediments used as raw material. [8]
The other major use of dried peat is as a soil amendment (sold as moss peat or sphagnum peat) to increase the soil's capacity to retain moisture and enrich the soil. [4] It is also used as a mulch . Some distilleries , notably in the Islay whisky-producing region, use the smoke from peat fires to dry the barley used in making Scotch whisky .
Ads
related to: is peat good for soil protection in plants and vegetables and food web