Bulbs
Flower Basics
Flower Beds & Specialty Gardens
Flower Garden
Garden Furniture
Garden Gnomes
Garden Seeds
Garden Sheds
Garden Statues
Garden Tools & Supplies
Gardening Basics
Green & Organic
Groundcovers & Vines
Growing Annuals
Growing Basil
Growing Beans
Growing Berries
Growing Blueberries
Growing Cactus
Growing Corn
Growing Cotton
Growing Edibles
Growing Flowers
Growing Garlic
Growing Grapes
Growing Grass
Growing Herbs
Growing Jasmine
Growing Mint
Growing Mushrooms
Orchids
Growing Peanuts
Growing Perennials
Growing Plants
Growing Rosemary
Growing Roses
Growing Strawberries
Growing Sunflowers
Growing Thyme
Growing Tomatoes
Growing Tulips
Growing Vegetables
Herb Basics
Herb Garden
Indoor Growing
Landscaping Basics
Landscaping Patios
Landscaping Plants
Landscaping Shrubs
Landscaping Trees
Landscaping Walks & Pathways
Lawn Basics
Lawn Maintenance
Lawn Mowers
Lawn Ornaments
Lawn Planting
Lawn Tools
Outdoor Growing
Overall Landscape Planning
Pests, Weeds & Problems
Plant Basics
Rock Garden
Rose Garden
Shrubs
Soil
Specialty Gardens
Trees
Vegetable Garden
Yard Maintenance
What Is Peat Moss Made Of?
What Is Peat Moss Made Of?. Peat moss is commonly used in flower beds and planters to help regulate water and air flow to flowers, shrubs and other plants. There are many common sources of this common product for your garden.
Peat moss is commonly used in flower beds and planters to help regulate water and air flow to flowers, shrubs and other plants. There are many common sources of this common product for your garden.
Identification
Peat moss is made from decomposed mosses, such as sphagnum, hypnum, reeds or sedge. The most common source of peat moss is sphagnum.
Harvesting
Peat moss is generally removed from the ground by a process similar to mining, or stripped from the surface of the Earth.
Geography
Two-thirds of the world's peat moss is found in Russia, with large reserves also common in Finland, Ireland, Canada and the northern part of the Midwestern states in the United States, according to the University of Vermont.
Benefits
Peat moss is able to store 20 times its weight in water and slowly releases it to the plants that surround it, according to The Canadian Sphagnum Peat Moss Association. It also protects soil from hardening and leeching and provides air to root systems.
Considerations
Some environmentalists are concerned about peat moss conservation, according to Mother Earth News. This is because 10 million cubic yards of peat moss are harvested from Canadian peat bogs each year, and it takes the bogs 1,000 years to produce one cubic yard of peat moss.
