“We have stopped using peat entirely and can now supply our customers with 100% peat-free products for the first time".
Opschroef’s nursery is located in Straelen (Niederrhein, Germany), and specialises in anthurium and hebe. The main market for anthurium is Germany and hebe is sold throughout Europe. Owner Peter anticipated market developments and the wishes of end customers. He now grows all his plants using 100% peat-free substrate from Lensli.
The nursery started transitioning to peat-free potting soil some years ago when they noticed a growing market demand in Germany for sustainable production processes and plants. Following a trial using various peat-free substrates, Lensli's peat-free substrate emerged as the winner. Peter Opschroef chose Lensli’s substrate “as it had the best structure and was easy to work with".
Opschroef started by using the peat-free substrate to grow anthuriums. Encouraged by the success, he applied the same strategy to hebe. Today, all the plants at his nursery are grown on peat-free substrate. The major retail and other chains also changed their sustainability policies. Since products grown on peat-free substrate represent added value in the chain, many of these retailers now source their plants from Opschroef because of his 100% peat-free strategy.
Good alternatives
Peter Opschroef shares his experiences: “Anyone who is involved with substrate, even to just a minor degree, knows there is a limited range of raw materials that can be used in peat-free growing media. The options include bark, rice husks, wood fibre and compost. You start with a basic recipe and build from there. Everyone starts in the same position. Our customers were enthusiastic straight away when we asked them about supplying plants grown on peat-free substrate. Then it was down to us to find good alternatives, which wasn't easy. The main issue was: can we create stability with the new raw materials to secure competitiveness in the longer term? The process doesn't stop when you find an alternative. There is always something that can be improved. We use a different substrate for anthurium than for hebe. There’s no such thing as a universally suitable substrate".
A peat-free substrate also requires a different method from the grower. “'You have to respond to two aspects. Firstly, we need to water the plant more often to compensate for the high air volume of peat. That does not mean that the plant needs more water, but the intervals become shorter. That is positive, because it is almost impossible for a peat-free substrate to become too wet. Secondly, you have to know the lesser buffering function of the peat-free substrate. Fertilizers cannot be fixed in the substrate, but are immediately available. That means, for example, that you have to add more nitrogen and less potassium.”
Opschroef does not see his nursery as XNUMX% organic. “We use as few chemical plant protection products as possible for sustainability, but that usage can always be reduced further. Some customers don’t want any traces of products in the plants and actually go beyond the requirements of current legislation. Because our customers place certain quality standards on the plants, we want to keep on improving the substrate. We are running trials to see if we can use more organic resources".
"After the trial, we chose Lensli's potting soil, as it had the best structure and was easy to work with".