Growers and industry urge people to buy peat-free houseplants
Growers and retailers at the RHS Urban Show have urged houseplant enthusiasts to buy peat-free as they join to make changes
“The public doesn’t know that most houseplants are not peat-free,” said Brian Redman, European Supply Chain Manager for Blue Diamond Garden Centres.
Speaking from the first ever RHS Urban Show, where Blue Diamond hosted an exhibit of peat-free-grown plants that won the award for Best Tradestand, he said:
“Being on the stand at the RHS Urban Show was an opportunity to talk to people about making sustainable decisions when purchasing house plants. I have suggested, ‘When you buy a houseplant, ask what it’s grown in’. Lots of people really hadn't considered this before and many left the stand saying that they will now do so."
“The public has seen and supported the removal of peat-based bagged
Why is peat-free so important?
“At the moment not enough of the houseplants sold in UK garden centres are peat-free and approximately 90% of our houseplants still come from the Netherlands, which has been really slow on the uptake of peat-free. We are now working with some growers from the Netherlands that are peat-free but this is a longer process, I would suggest 80% of houseplants coming out of The Netherlands may contain peat at the moment,” he said.
“Previously we only had around two to three percent of peat-free houseplants in our Blue Diamond stores, but our target this year is to have in excess of 50% peat-free plants in our houseplant range. We are a big player in the industry and want to be the driving force behind this, to ultimately achieve a 100% peat free houseplant offer."
![]()
Blue Diamond exhibition of houseplants grown peat-free at the RHS Urban Show 2024
Blue Diamond exhibition of houseplants grown peat-free at the RHS Urban Show 2024
Most houseplants are grown in the Netherlands
Earlier this year, the Dutch Government offered the possibility of financial support to Dutch start-ups, scale-ups, and innovative small to medium businesses seeking innovative solutions that could replace the use of peat in products exported from the Netherlands to the UK, including plugs and young plants, which demonstrates a Dutch shift towards peat-free horticulture.
![]()
Blue Diamond exhibition of houseplants grown peat-free at the RHS Urban Show 2024
Blue Diamond exhibition of houseplants grown peat-free at the RHS Urban Show 2024
The British horticulture industry is collaborating to make change happen. In 2023 the RHS Industry Peat-Free Survey highlighted that of 38 horticulture businesses that grow indoor houseplants, 53% percent of the growing media used to grow indoor houseplants was peat-free, 37% was peat-reduced and 11% peat-based. The majority of peat used in houseplants is in the propagation and young plant stage.
Spearheaded by science
Led by RHS Science, the RHS-industry-Defra collaborative Transition to Peat-Free project – which began in 2022 – brings together government, eight major UK growers including Hills, a houseplant grower, and seven growing media manufacturers to assist and accelerate the UK’s transition to peat-free.
RHS Peat-Free Fellow Dr Raghavendra Prasad said: “The RHS Transition to Peat-Free Fellowship works with eight commercial growers, including Hills Plants, who mainly grow houseplants. Our trials at Hills Plants are focused on peat-free houseplant propagation and growing, so our findings will be used to help the houseplant sector achieve a sustainable transition to peat-free.
“With the popularity and availability of houseplants increasing rapidly, it’s vital that we ensure people are able to find the plants they want, grown without the need for environmentally damaging peat extraction.
“UK plug plant and young plant nurseries can also play a crucial role by providing peat-free young plants. That will contribute to accelerating the journey towards 100% peat-free horticulture.”
Growers get together
In addition, The Horti House, a collection of British growers, was formed last year. One of the founding partners was Double H Nurseries, who grow over one and a half million orchids in the UK, making them the largest orchid grower in the UK.
Andy Burton, Managing Director of Double H Nurseries, said: “Our mission is to transform houseplant wholesale. It’s all about providing a route to market for British growers and helping British growers to get their plants to retailers and to help retailers source the best British houseplants.
“A few years ago we were seeing more and more friction at the borders, extra import costs, extra delays bringing plants from Holland, and we realised it was actually an opportunity for British growers.”
Sean Higgs, Owner of the carnivorous plant nursery Floralive and part of Horti House, has grown hundreds of thousands of carnivorous plants since 1977. He has worked with the RHS on trials of peat-free mixes for carnivorous plants.
“In the early eighties, it finally dawned on me that to grow carnivorous plants at home we needed to dig up their natural environment and ruin it, which didn’t sit very well with me, so I went on a journey of research and development to come up with solutions to grow without using peat.
“It took a long time, but by 1990 I was growing completely peat-free in my personal collection. I then put together trials to try and find a solution that anybody could use, and brought it to the market for the public,” he said.
![]()
![]()
In 2019, the RHS stopped the sale of retail bagged growing media and compost containing peat. Subsequently, in 2021, as part of its Sustainability Strategy, the RHS announced its commitment to achieving 100% peat-free in all operations by the end of 2025. This includes a legacy peat policy.
The RHS Urban Show Blue Diamond exhibit had a goal of promoting their ambitious aims to go completely peat-free and at the same time educating the public. With stores selling thousands of plants a year, the retailer holds an influential position in the market to enable change with consumers.
“The beauty of having one of the key retailers of garden plants involved in this transition and movement to peat-free is that you can start to put pressure on the market in Holland,” said Brian Redman.
“Previously we only had around two to three percent of peat-free houseplants in our Blue Diamond stores, but my target this year is to have in excess of 50% peat-free plants from the plants that were traditionally grown in peat. Ideally we would aim for 100% as soon as possible but I can’t put a date on it. We are a big player in the industry and if we are the driving force behind this, I would expect us to be completely peat-free completely before anyone else.
“Plants are ‘grown in peat-free’, so currently the plug element may still contain peat in some cases. My position on this is that we have to reduce as much peat as we can in houseplant production and as quickly as possible. I believe that this is the best and fastest way to get the highest volume of reduction. I also plan to work with RHS Science teams to support and apply additional pressure to help speed up the transition in plug production.
“As a company we are putting pressure on the market and we are in a very good position to push this forward.”
Peat-free for the planet
“Going peat-free has a multitude of benefits for the environment, as the extraction of peat releases climate-harming greenhouse gases and destroys habitats that have an important role in water storage and as a home for a unique range of wildlife,” said Professor Alistair Griffiths, RHS Director of Science and Collections.
“Every horticultural business that makes the move to stop using peat is doing their bit to reduce the industry’s impact on the climate and ensure it can be truly green for the future.”
