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Coconut coir instead of peatmoss?
+5
Nonna.PapaVino
QuestionAndPlanter
westx
sfg4uKim
Farmer Don
9 posters
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Coconut coir instead of peatmoss?
Can coconut coir be used instead of peat moss as 1/3 of Mel's mix? Coir is a more neutral pH and is easily renewable.
Re: Coconut coir instead of peatmoss?
Hi FD!
If you type in Coir in the Google Search area (upper left) and make sure the Search SFG Forum is checked, you will see a LOT of info on this topic.
If you type in Coir in the Google Search area (upper left) and make sure the Search SFG Forum is checked, you will see a LOT of info on this topic.
I have seen women looking at jewelry ads with a misty eye and one hand resting on the heart, and I only know what they're feeling because that's how I read the seed catalogs in January - Barbara Kingsolver - Animal, Vegetable, Miracle
sfg4u.com
FB: Square Foot Gardening 4 U
FB: Square Foot Gardening 4 U
Re: Coconut coir instead of peatmoss?
FD
I use a Mels Mix made by a company here in Texas that is made with Coir. It works just fine.
I use a Mels Mix made by a company here in Texas that is made with Coir. It works just fine.
westx- Posts : 52
Join date : 2011-05-27
Location : Ellis County, Texas
Peat and Peat Moss are different!?
I was FASCINATED to just read on Mel's blog that peat and peat moss are related, but critically different. Peat is a non-renewable resource, peat moss IS renewable. And guess what Mel's Mix uses? Peat moss! I'm so thrilled about this! BIG news! How many people know this?
QuestionAndPlanter- Posts : 2
Join date : 2012-10-03
Location : Bingham Farms, MI
Re: Coconut coir instead of peatmoss?
westx, I've used both peat moss and coir this year...in two different beds...and didn't see any difference in plant growth: beans, peas, kales. Next year I'll use whatever is most cost effective. Nonna
Nonna.PapaVino- Posts : 1437
Join date : 2011-02-07
Location : In hills west of St. Helens, OR
Re: Coconut coir instead of peatmoss?
no choice we make in any part of our lives is truly without impact. my concerns about peat moss/sphagnum are about the environmental impact of harvesting it. while peat moss is technically "renewable", extraction of the moss destroys a natural bog habitat that takes 10,000 years to form, including the habitat that supports the moss. many botanic gardens around the world strongly discourage the use of peat and peat moss specifically for these reasons. i myself am torn about it, because there are companies in the developed world that are working on ways in which to solve these problems and i wish to support them, and yet i have serious concerns that at this time have not yet been solved.
Re: Coconut coir instead of peatmoss?
Farmer Don wrote:Can coconut coir be used instead of peat moss as 1/3 of Mel's mix? Coir is a more neutral pH and is easily renewable.
Yes.... in my book it's as good peat moss as by way of being almost the same PH , water absorbent and decayed past the nitrogen robbing stage . It is basically the bit that helps contain the plant skeleton , some moisture and provides drainage & oxygen paths to the plant roots . For me it is also a heck of a lot cheaper than peat.
plantoid- Posts : 4096
Join date : 2011-11-09
Age : 73
Location : At the west end of M4 in the UK
Re: Coconut coir instead of peatmoss?
Actually here in North America it is sphagnum moss, but frequently referred to as peat moss.
43 years a gardener and going strong with SFG.
https://squarefoot.forumotion.com/t3574-the-end-of-july-7-weeks-until-frost
There are certain pursuits which, if not wholly poetic and true, do at least suggest a nobler and finer relation to nature than we know. The keeping of bees, for instance. ~ Henry David Thoreau
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Re: Coconut coir instead of peatmoss?
UK wise we have sedge peat bogs in the Scottish Highlands and I think the fens of east anglia which does take yonks to rebuild
But we do also have spagnum moss peat bogs as well , I think these are mainly in Cumbria and Ireland ( N & S )
Sedges are bog grasses with soild stems where as spagmum is a bog moss
I think the word peat just refers to the fact that it has died .part decayed & become preserved in an anerobic condition so it still fiberous & hard instead of dropping away to soft fibres like the aerobic decay changes plant fibres .
Once exposed to air , water , bacteria & nutrients most peats fully decay in about 10 to15 years
But we do also have spagnum moss peat bogs as well , I think these are mainly in Cumbria and Ireland ( N & S )
Sedges are bog grasses with soild stems where as spagmum is a bog moss
I think the word peat just refers to the fact that it has died .part decayed & become preserved in an anerobic condition so it still fiberous & hard instead of dropping away to soft fibres like the aerobic decay changes plant fibres .
Once exposed to air , water , bacteria & nutrients most peats fully decay in about 10 to15 years
plantoid- Posts : 4096
Join date : 2011-11-09
Age : 73
Location : At the west end of M4 in the UK
Re: Coconut coir instead of peatmoss?
I'll try and answer the question of peat vs. coir. We bought the Pre Made Mel's Mix, and for some reason, they use the coir instead of the peat. It seems "stringier" than the peat, which I think actually helped to keep our corn from tipping over?? I think the roots were able to "hang on to it" a little better if that makes sense. This is not a scientific answer, only my opinion. It does hold water well, but it's kind of more grainy than the peat and not as "soft". So, I guess the answer is "yes" for us.
southern gardener- Posts : 1887
Join date : 2011-06-21
Age : 43
Location : california, zone 10a
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