The Horticultural Trades Association (HTA) and the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) hosted a peat-free growing workshop at Hillier Nurseries in Hampshire last week.

Wayne Brough, the HTA’s horticulture technical manager, and the RHS’ Raghavendra Prasad, a post-doctoral fellow, held hands-on demonstrations for growers at the event on Thursday 6 March.

Attendees also heard from Charles Carr, head of Hillier Nurseries, and Geoff Caesar, Allensmore Nurseries’ business development director before being given a tour of Hillier.

“The event once again showed that grower-to-grower knowledge sharing is essential for a successful and sustainable peat-free transition,” says Prasad.

“One of the key takeaways is the importance of data collection at a nursery level and an understanding of the tools and equipment that can be deployed to capture this information. Used alongside growers’ own expertise, it can drive better decision making, optimising results and driving efficiency in resource use, such as for water and nutrients.”

This event is part of a broader series aimed at supporting growers through the transition to peat-free practices.