Should I avoid peat-based soil mixes?
One of the easiest ways to start seed is in a pre-made seed-starting tray like this one.
What’s great about these is they do exactly what they’re made for: the pellets expand and sit neatly in the tray, and the little plastic dome on top helps you keep the humidity inside juuuust right. I was given a few of these by a relative, so that’s what I’m using this year. (Here’s how to re-hydrate it without making a mess)
But:
if you’re going out and buying it,
it’s worth thinking twice about your seed-starting mix.
The majority of commercially available seed-starting mixes are composed of a non-renewable nightmare material called “peat.” (aka “peat moss,” “sphagnum peat moss”)
Peat is a highly-compact and partially decayed version of sphagnum moss, a kind of moss that primarily grows in wetlands. It takes thousands of years for peat to form; to harvest it destroys the wetlands that create it. As if that’s not problematic enough, wetlands are critical bastions of biodiversity and indispensable carbon sinks. We need wetlands to stave off the worst effects of climate change.
By one estimate, the peat moss harvest industry releases around 400,000 tons of greenhouse gases every year: the same as 100,000 cars on the road! Not only can destroyed wetlands no longer sequester new carbon, the bogs continue to release carbon into the atmosphere long after the initial harvest has occurred.
You didn’t get into food growing to destroy the planet it grows on…so why the heck is peat such a mainstream product for gardeners?!
I think it goes without saying that it’s worth it to avoid using peat where you can.
One particularly good alternative is coconut coir, a fibrous waste product of the coconut industry that comes from milling coconut husks. Coconut (or "coco”) coir performs well in comparison to peat and has many of the same desirable qualities without the same level of environmental devastation.
This feels complicated and morally ambiguous.
Can I just put my seeds in dirt?
Sure.
But seed-starting mixes have their pros too: they are lightweight so delicate seedlings wont struggle to push their way through, and they are highly, evenly absorbent so that seedling aren’t in danger of drying out if you stop looking at them for five minutes.
If you choose to start your seeds in another medium, you might be successful, but you will have to keep a close eye on your seedlings’ air, moisture, and nutrient needs.