The RHS is confirming that from 2026 all plants for sale at its retail outlets and online will be grown fully peat-free or only contain peat already in production cycle before the end of 2025.
The move comes despite the Government ban on retail peat sales being cast aside, and legislation being stalled*.
With no Government legislation on a Peat ban, no official guidance on Peat Free definitions and little funding, the UK horticultural industry faces immense challenges as it continues striving to maintain its position as world leader in peat free horticulture.
The industry is reliant on the 60% of young plants – predominantly Peat Starter Plants - brought in from overseas, primarily Holland. With no Government legislation on peat imports and complex supply chains, many nurseries and Plant Centres remain dependent on these lines as the UK transitions to Peat Free.
RHS Director General, Clare Matterson CBE, says: “Despite the challenges this brings, in terms of sourcing plants that haven’t started life as ‘Peat Starter Plants’, our ambition is to be the UK’s leading supplier of ‘No New Peat’ plants, where ‘no new peat’ really means ‘no new peat’.
“Gardeners who care about enhancing biodiversity in their gardens will be able to shop in the knowledge they are not damaging our precious peat bogs and know that from next year no plants that the RHS sells will contain any peat extracted after the end of 2025.”
To continue to lobby Government; support industry and gardeners and see UK horticulture continue to lead the way transitioning to peat free, the RHS will call on everyone to:
- Help make UK Horticulture Peat Free
The RHS aims to work with wider charities and call on and RHS members, communities and our nation of gardeners, and industry to lobby government for a peat ban with clarity on a time-line and with packages for the industry transition. The RHS remains committed to investing in Peat Free research and continuing to support the industry to transition.
- Save our Precious Peat Bogs
At point of sale and via its communications channels the RHS will raise awareness of why UK Peatlands are vital, storing approximately 3.2 billion tonnes of carbon—making them the largest natural land-based carbon store in the country.
However, around 80% of UK peatlands are damaged—and they’re leaking around 16.6 million tonnes of greenhouse gases every year.
- Ensure ‘No new Peat’, Means ‘No new Peat’
With 56% of people not knowing if plants they purchase are grown in peat**, the RHS is challenging consumers to question whether plants for sale are grown without peat or with new peat extracted after 2025.
Clare continues: “Without any Government legislation on banning peat, it’s not a level playing field for growers and plant centres leading the charge and taking risks to be peat free. We know ourselves that there may be issues around plant supplies and we will need to consider a different retail offering going forward, whilst still offering our visitors and customers a fantastic choice of varieties of plants for their gardens and outside spaces.
“Ultimately the more we can all champion growing peat free plants and the more growers there are producing peat-free plants, the better for the planet.”
As the Government has not defined what ‘peat-free’ means for consumers given there is old peat in the supply chain for plants that have been growing for several years. To provide clarity for gardeners wanting to choose the best plants for the planet, the RHS earlier this year created its own definitions to help the public make informed choices:
· No New Peat Plants – plants grown entirely peat free or older plants containing peat already in production cycle before the end of 2025 **
· Peat Starter Plants – plants which started their life in peat (as a plug plant or liner) but have since been grown peat free
· Peat Plants – grown in peat since 31st December 2025
Earlier this year in March, due to no Government Legislation, the RHS had to introduce concessions at its Flower Shows to support growers in their final stages of transitioning to 100% Peat Free up to 2028. The RHS’s five gardens at Bridgewater, Wisley, Rosemoor, Hyde Hall and Harlow Carr have been No New Peat Plants since June this year. The RHS has been growing No New Peat within its own nurseries for the last two years and has been 98% Peat Free for nearly 25 years.
ENDS
