Majestic Trees has just had its most successful peat-free trial yet. The Hertfordshire based nursery showcased the results of its efforts at the RHS Hampton Court Palace Garden Festival last week, bringing with it several peat-free trees including a Prunus x yedoensis that featured on Arit Anderson’s RHS Peat-Free Garden. 

After 10 years of trials, over 300 trees were grown in peat-free compost using AirPot technology for the 2022/23 season. This has been upped to over 1,500 in the 2023/24 season and is expected to increase further next year, reckons nursery team leader Ellen Underwood, who has been leading the trials. 

But despite the significant advances in moving towards 100% peat-free production ahead of the government’s deadline, managing director Steve McCurdy is concerned that the Royal Horticultural Society’s target of using only peat-free plants across its shows and gardens by 2026 is an overly ambitious one – at least, for those growing mature trees. 

“While many nurseries are finding it relatively easy to adopt peat-free methods for crops that take six weeks to six months to grow, Majestic Trees is focused on maintaining the structural integrity and moisture retention of peat-free compost for long-term tree health and overcoming the challenges of growing ericaceous plants peat-free. Rushing the process could lead to these genera being imported from Europe, with associated increased carbon footprints and biosecurity risks.” 

He says 2030 would be a “more achievable target” for the new restrictions that the RHS plans to introduce. From 2026 onwards, anyone exhibiting or selling plants at its shows will be asked to sign a declaration that all plants at the show are peat free, though the nursery itself does not need to be entirely free of peat.  

McCurdy expects that, by this point, most stock (over 90%) at Majestic Trees will be grown without the use of peat, though with trials underway, he expects trees such as Styrax and Stewartia will be a challenge, so show gardens and exhibitors might be limited in what they can use. “The RHS either has to extend the deadline or allow certain species to still grow in peat.” 

Majestic Trees has been working towards the deadline for the last couple of years. “We’ve been doing it on and off since 2012, but nothing serious; as the deadline was getting closer, though, we decided to really go for it. We thought we’d take a completely different approach and start from the beginning as though we knew nothing,” says Underwood. 

Issues such as using more water and poor rooting out had been identified previously, so Underwood started sampling various composts from different suppliers. “We found one that was best for us, that was cost effective as well, and carried out a few moisture absorbency tests. We then developed a mix that was best for us with a supplier.” 

Starting with 300 bareroot trees, 80L in size and including more than 20 species, Underwood and the team started treating the peat-free compost as a “whole new product”. “We changed the way we watered them, and it was much more effective. We got water distribution throughout the whole pot, rather than just sinking to the bottom, and we found that we used half as much water as our full peat reduced grown stock of the same size.” 

It’s given Majestic Trees the confidence to up the trial to more than 1,500 trees this year, but variation in pot size and species makes this far from straightforward. “We’ve got trees that have been on the nursery for 20 years that are still growing, and we want to maintain their structure and nutrient levels and water holding abilities for years, as well as when we plant them into other people’s gardens.” 

It does, however, show what’s possible, which is exactly what Anderson’s garden at Hampton Court was striving to do. “Putting the garden together is really to helpfully give people encouragement that a 100% peat-free garden can be achieved,” says Anderson. “Obviously, you need to work with your suppliers and check an availability list. Sometimes, it’s not always about being able to demand exactly what you want within a palette; but I think it’s a way of giving people confidence to grow peat free.  

“I know the RHS are really hoping that all their shows will be 100% peat free by 2026, and it might take some hard work; there may be a couple of categories of plants that might not make it in. But I think everyone is definitely moving in the right direction.” 

Progress is being made, and growers such as Majestic Trees are showing a genuine commitment to achieving peat-free status. Whether they reach their target in time for the RHS’ deadline remains to be seen, but there’s little doubt that show gardens and exhibits will need to change.