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List your favorite brand of Canadian Peat Moss?

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ClackamasCootz

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RE: Nirom

Is this the label?

38cu_eng_web.jpg
 

moses wellfleet

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Scrappy4

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I 've used pro mix the most. It has been limed for ph. And it works very well as a medium. More pricey though, if that is any concern.

And I have used premier peat from home depot and lambert brand peat. Both of these that i have used are just peat and they are similar except lambert has multiple products, so read the label so there are no surprises.....scrappy
 

ClackamasCootz

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i believe that premier bought nirom out... this was their logo:

moses

That's how the members of the Canadian Sphagnum Peat Moss Association can increase their harvest allotment - buying smaller companies and thereby getting that company's share.

You can see from the list that peat moss is harvested in several provinces meaning that a pack of peat moss labeled 'Premier Peat' in California is not going to be from the same harvesting district as a product in the Upper Midwest or East Coast. The product in California will come from Alberta or Ontario and the peat moss east of the Mississippi River will be out of Quebec, New Brunswick, Manitoba, etc.

Even Sun Gro Horticulture (Sunshine Mix) pulls from areas across Canada so that the Sunshine Mix #4 on the West Coast will have the core ingredient (peat moss) from Alberta or Ontario but a different harvest district for other states.

To confuse the situation further, Sun Gro is larger than all of their competitors combined. That isn't necessarily a good thing but that's the way it has worked out - most of it from their good luck by the fact that Oregon & California own the nursery stock business. Overwhelmingly.

Here's a good overview on the grading system used by our friends in Canada on their peat moss harvests. Interesting if nothing else.

HTH

CC
 

moses wellfleet

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yes very confusing but thank you for that link... i have used bales labelled: Parklands/Sungro as well but the ph was very low at 2.7
 
M

Mtn Dew

Nirom is the brand of Canadian peat moss that has worked best for me over the years what is yours?

Premier is all I got local .Also have Walmart junk full of sticks and crap. premier is nice quality nothing but pure peat 7$ 3/cft
 
so far ive used alaska peat, premiere, sunshine, stuff in a yellow bag, i think lmg is the brand and even peat moss made by orchard supply and its all seemed the same to me so now i get the cheapest which is alaska peat. if cheaper peat is shittier quality i havent noticed or i havent had the cheap shitty stuff yet.

now it seems like some brands bails are more compact like the alaska peat. i could barely pick a bail up and it breaks up to so much, the other brands seem a little looser and lighter.

i wonder how many cubic feet it breaks down to once loosened? it seems like a lot more then 3.8. more like 5 cf. anybody know?
 

Microbeman

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I can vouch for Premier sphagnum peat moss being of a good quality microbially on every batch I have tested thus far. The stuff I currently get is called ProMoss from Premier.

I have also tested Alaska Peat and found it to be of good quality microbially. One advantage to this brand is that it appears to be harvested in northern Alberta only, which in my opinion makes for better quality. (similar to 'Alaska Humus' type products.)

I've only tested Sunshine peatmoss once and although it had some microbial activity it was much less than the other two.

Appropriate microbial activity equates to sequestered nutrients in my estimation, experience and uneducated opinion.

It is dissappointing that Premier is so expensive.
 

ClackamasCootz

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rrog

Premier Horticulture >> Pro-Mix >> Premier Peat >> ProMoss by Premier

Then there's another division called Premier Tech Horticulture which produces the Glomus intraradices strains (endo) which are sold to companies that have their endo/ecto mixes.

MM can give you more information on this strain and the role that Premier Tech holds.

HTH

CC
 

ClackamasCootz

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rrog

Sun Gro Horticulture (Sunshine Mix, Black Gold, et al) holds the exact same position in the horticulture industry that McDonald's does in the food service sector.

"They're the biggest - that doesn't translate into being the best"
 

rrog

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I'd avoid Sun Gro for that reason alone. I much prefer to deal with the little guys
 

ClackamasCootz

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That's why I like the Alaska Peat (brand) - that's all they do: harvest Sphagnum, pack it and sell it.

They don't do soil mixes, they don't do fertilizers, they don't try and hit every market from commercial to Rite Aid's garden centers.

The local price is $13.50 for the standard Canadian pack 3.8 c.f. but when working with straight Sphagnum that isn't much of a number to work with because depending on what you're growing, how long it will sit in a container, type of container, etc. that will determine how 'loose' you want to break up the bales.

At commercial nurseries they have machines called "bale busters' which is what they do - you load a certain number of unpackaged bales (depends on the machine size you're using), set it for how loose or dense you want the material to be, close the lid and hit the switch. In about 10 minutes you'll have the peat moss at the consistency you need for that day's planting.

Or you do what I do - rip the bag open and start stabbing it with a trowel. Bale busters are much more efficient - LOL

CC
 

rrog

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I'll be stabbing bales. I wonder if I can get Alaska Peat in Michigan. I may contact them and see who re-sells their stuff.
 
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