If you're taking part in our peat-free compost trial, please keep us upated on your progress and upload your pics on the Gallery if you can. I'll be taking part in the trial (if my husband has left me any room in the greenhouse!). Results will appear on Gardening.co.uk and in Gardens Monthly magazine in the summer. Or, let us know your views on peat (and peat-free alternatives). Do you garden peat-free - and how do you find it?
(Sarah B - editor, Gardening.co.uk)

tell me more

Last year we used for the first time peat free recycled compost. We used it for growing seeds and planting on our plug plants. We also had a peat free grow bag which we grew cucumbers in, and although they were slow to grow we did eventually have some cues. We grow organically and have 3 of our own compost bins dotted about the garden, but the "black gold" from this is put back in to our veg and flower plots each winter.

Have just started mine off. I have decided that to make it a totally fair trial I needed to run it in conjuction with other methods.

So last weekend I started some tomato plants off the way I usually would - using peat plugs in an unheated propagator on my conservatory windowsill ( we had the conservatory windowsills made especially wide so that I could do this when we had it built!!). These have already germinated.

So yesterday (Saturday) I filled two mini trays with peatfree compost, and two trays with a proprietary compost containing peat. Then I put 10 tomato seeds into one of the PF trays and 10 into one of the peat ones. I repeated this with 20 marigold seeds in a tray of each type, watered them all, put them in a larger tray (labelled), and put a propagator lid on them and placed them on the conservatory window sill next to the ones I did last week.

I am really looking forward to seeing what happens and will keep you posted (its all written up in the diary!)

Best of luck Shelagh. I am about to start the trial myself and will also use peat to gain a good comparison. Message to John Fletcher, the details of the trial can be found at the top of this page in the 'article related to the thread' on the peat-free compost trail. Although the trial selection has been made, anyone who wants to take part in the trial off their own back, please feel free to do so and report your findings.
(Sarah B, Gardening.co.uk)

Checked propagator this evening (Tuesday) and the first marigold seeds are up. 2 in the peat free compost and 4 in the other!! Watch this space

All the marigold seeds are now up in both the peat free and the other compost. Not a tomato plant in sight yet though. However the ones I started 10days earlier are doing really well!!

As part of the peat-free trial I have planted 12 marigold seeds, 3 to a 3in pot in peat-free compost and 12 in John Innes No 1 (peat-based) seed compost to see what, if any, difference there will be. Tomatoes still to come.

All the marigold seeds have germinated in the pots on my living-room table, facing the window and in the heated propagator. I've kept an eye on the temperature with the thermometer.
I have a peat-free gro-bag for the tomato, although our neighbour said that 'Moneymaker' did not make a great greenhouse tomato. We shall see.
(editor - Gardening.co.uk)

I now have 40 marigold seedlings and 20 tomato seedlings - so all my seedlings have germinated - both peatfree and the other as well. All seedlings look healthy and strong. Shall photograph them and upload the photos

That's great they've all germinated, I've been busy snapping away and will also get the photos uploaded to the Gallery. Come the weekend, I shall prick out the marigolds and find room for them somewhere. Then, on with the tomato growing.

Same thing for me, thank goodness I have wide window sills in the conservatory

im very interested in the compost trial how do i get sum?

All pricked out now and in little pots to grow on. Have photographed all stages and shall upload the photos tomorrow! So far there seems to be very little difference between the two

My marigolds are also all pricked out now into their own little pots and still on the living room table in the propagator. I know that the real test of 'peat versus peat-free' won't really start until the young plants begin drawing on the soil for nutrients. As far as the germinating seedlings go, the seeds in peat-free pots came up faster and stronger. After pricking out, the ones in peat-based compost look stronger.

Having pricked out, I would say that the marigolds in the peatfree look marginally stronger, and the tomatos in the normal compost ditto. They are all on the windowsill in the conservatory so that the growing conditions are the same. The toms I started earlier (in peatplugs) are doing really well as well. I reckon I will have to start saving all my glass jars rather tha recycling as I will have so many toms in the summer that the only recourse will be chutney!!

Forgot to say, am also growing some passion fruit from seed (from the plant I took the photo of) and have tried some of those in peatfree compost as well. 100% success rate with those as well.

Look forward to hearing the results of the passion fruit, Shelagh.

All potted on again into the next size up and moved from conservatory to greenhouse as I was running out of space. Have taken photos of the root structure of both the tomato plants and marigolds. Have to say that I have been so impressed with the peat free compost that I have just bought a load more to pot all my other seedlings up into. The only differences I seem to have noticed is the obvious that the peat free needs watering more often, and also that the roots seem to develop better with the peat free ones. I shall carry it on throughout the summer growing plants side by side and have today bought both peat free and normal grow bags for the tomatos when they are ready.

All passion flowers doing well as well

The marigolds are outside in our new mini greenhouse, which was purchased recently from Poundstretcher for the grand sum of £9.99. At the moment it's even Stephens, with the seedlings (a few didn't make it from both batches) looking generally as strong in the peat-based and peat-free composts.

Like Shelagh, the only difference I've noticed is the need for more watering of the peat-free compost.

I'm considering growing Gardener's Delight instead of Moneymaker for the tomato on the grounds that Gardener's Delight is meant to have a lot more flavour. Tomatoes, I have to admit, scare me in our British climate. You know what a tomato tastes like when you're in Greece or somewhere in the Med. If there's one plant I'm scared to grow it's the tomato. Oh well, face your fear sand press on I suppose.

Good luck Shelagh with your experment.
(ed - Gardening.co.uk)