Unfortunately the data does not mean much here because you did not use water with a neutral ph water. You used hard water that is a ph of 7.
Thus, it is just as possible that the changes to PH over time is due to this buffer from your water and nothing to do with long term peat moss acidity effects. Many people have soft water, or RO water with a mucher lower ph and lower amount of calcium carbonate which is the same as dolomite lime, which is actually put into peat moss to raise the ph!
But it does mean something, because I water with my water, and so it shows the effect in my garden. If peat actually acidified the soil, then there would be other test results on line — I could not find any.
Commercial growers use peat for acid loving plants but they also feed them a nutrient solution at pH 5. The advantage of using peat is that they can skip a feeding cycle on a cloudy day without risking too much pH drift. I grew up in a town that roughly translates to old peat. We use what we call sphagnum peat moss hear — the only peat I have used.
Last year in Ireland I found their peat and it is nothing like I expected. It is quite hard and dense. Lots of different peats. No matter how you do it, if plant is not growing well you should first measure pH and not assume that peat moss or sulfur did what you wanted it to do. I have had great results with peat moss in my soils, but that does not necessarily mean it will work in other soils or climates.
I think in most instances organic matter is a key part of the ecology of acid loving plants and how they uptake nutrients, so this is an additional factor to consider in growing these kinds of plants in neutral or alkaline soils, and also explains why simply adding sulfur will not always work. Part of the art and science of gardening. Peat moss for growing acid loving plants is recommended by ag extension services as well as by most nurseries in the Rocky Mountain region which tends to have alkaline soils.
This is mostly based on experience from growing these plants using different amendments. I agree with others that the main effect is probably not pH, because as you found its effect on pH is either small or transient. We grow blueberries in a buried bale of peat moss, as recommended by local fruit growers, with great yields.
Blueberries in native soil without amendments rarely survive for more than one growing season here. Some people have been able to get good yields for 10 years or more with one bale, so it can last a long time.
In this case we use normal irrigation water but do use fertilizers that are recommended for acid loving plants, so that might help maintain acidity or whatever it is that peat moss provides.
I also mulch them with conifer needles old Christmas tree boughs over the winter, which might help too. A better experiment would be to grow blueberries in a variety of soil amendments and see what works best. I found several experiments like this for restoration studies, but again they were not able to explain why peat usually works so well compared to other amendments.
A good test of comparative soils chemistry with such an experiment might be illuminating. Thank you for the article and experiment. So many articles and YouTube videos recommend Peat Moss to acidifying soil. Nice to see a science based answer. You make good sense Robert and I suspect the main advantage of the peat is physical rather than chemical. I would expect raised beds of peat where they might receive less alkaline drainage water to retain their acidity longer.
Some of our Somerset peats are of alkaline nature. Great article. We use to use peat moss 20 years ago as was recommended by nurseries. Since then we have used Agricultural Sulphur with good results on our acid loving plants azaeleas etc.
My questions is,is Agricultural Sulphur the correct Sulphur to use? Or is all sulphurs the same? Geologically young, high CEC soil is probably why. Rhizosphere pH is probably much lower than bulk soil pH. Rhizosphere pH can be quite different. Yes, you are right, the rhizosphere pH can be quite different in Wellington county Guelph, Cambridge, Kitchener, Elora. As a matter of fact, the latest agriculture Canada report states that the A horizon fluctuates between 6.
So basically, the rhizosphere pH ranges from 6. Last time I was there, those plants were performing very well. There are two groups — one bunch is almost dead.
While all organic material will go through an acidic phase while decomposing, it does not mean that they are long-term contributors to overall soil acidity. I do not know of any reputable garden centre or website that advertises long term pH acidity gains from peat moss use.
It may be dated information, but the Dallas Chapter of the Azalea Society recommended a blend of half moistened peat and half finely shredded pine bark mulch for the raised beds that contain their acid loving plants.
This seemed to do the trick for the Dallas Arboretum which designed their beds on their advice and has thousands of Azaleas in an area of alkaline soil. This advice is what I used to grow my azaleas as well. They have lovely green leaf color and our water is supposedly from an area west of town that is alkaline.
Thanks, Robert for giving us more details on why this works. Baking soda has a ph of only 8. Notice the bubbles that form when you mix baking soda with acid? Those bubbles are carrying away oxygen, thereby increasing the ratio of hydrogen. More hydrogen means higher Potential Hydrogen PH. Press here to subscribe. Garden Myths - Learn the truth about gardening. Does Peat Moss Acidify Soil? By on Some very desirable plants like rhododendrons, azaleas and blueberries demand acidic soil and many gardeners have alkaline soil which is not suitable to grow these plants.
Does peat moss change soil pH? If you like this post, please share This entry is filed under Research Study , Soil and tagged peat moss , soil acidity. November 2, at pm. Robert Pavlis says:. Ray B Morris says:. August 2, at pm. August 3, at am. Major says:. Lars Forslin says:. March 14, at am. I mixed a bucketful into the planting hole for each bush, and then, for more dramatic acidification, when needed, added sulfur, a naturally occurring mineral. But Mr. Moss has to go, or at least be curbed.
It has to do with where he comes from. Peat moss is unsustainable. Peat moss comes from bogs, those dank environments home to such unique creatures as insect-eating pitcher plants, red-capped and long-necked sandhill cranes, and large heath butterflies.
Peat was formed as plants died and were swallowed up in water to partially decompose. What was left, after thousands of years, was a thick layer of almost pure humus, valuable also for being relatively sterile and relatively stable to further decomposition. Peat grew very, very slowly, about a yard deep every thousand years. A peat bog is a unique ecosystem, valuable in and of itself as well as for purifying water flowing through it.
Harvesting peat moss destroys that ecosystem, and the supply will be depleted given the slow regeneration rate. We can temper, to some degree, the bleakness of the above scenario. You can simply cut an opening in the middle of the broad side of the bale, and insert a tomato plant seedling.
There has been some ongoing discussion about whether or not the use of peat moss is environmentally responsible. Peat moss is a renewable resource. For more information on composting, go to HowToCompost. Feel free to share this article however it has to be copied and published the same way as on this website, without any changes and please include a link to the original material.
Good article except peat moss and sphagnum moss are not really the same. Sphagnum moss the fluffy green stuff is renewable but peat moss crumbly brown stuff is the dead highly compressed sphagnum moss that is on its way to becoming burnable peat in a few thousand years.
Peat moss is NOT a renewable resource. Thanks for the heads-up about peat moss. I have a lung condition, and didn't know the effects this is having on me. I have a question. If peat moss is water repellent and you add to clay soil what happens if it is very dry, cause clay cracks and if peat moss doesn't allow for water to absorb then what.
A page to actually answer my questions and give well thought-out information that is not just one sided. Great article! I didn't know that peat moss stuck to my lungs if I breathed it in. I'll be sure to wear a dust mask when I garden with it I was wondering why I was breathing weird after planting.
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