PRESS RELEASE
NEW: Dalefoot Composts adds comfrey into
its peat-free range to give plants a nutrient super boost
- Comfrey – the organic gardeners
best friend – a ‘dynamic accumulator’ packed with nutrients is added into
the Wool Compost range
- ‘Bocking
14’ variety has high levels of potassium, phosphorous & nitrogen for
healthy plant growth, larger flowers & bigger crops
- Comfrey
now being grown sustainably at Dalefoot farm as company scales up
peat-free compost production to supply many more garden centres and
nurseries across the UK, plus online for home delivery
- Bracken
for Dalefoot’s products sourced from Exmoor, Northumberland & Wales,
helping farming communities & local biodiversity further afield
Dalefoot Composts, the Lake
District peat-free compost maker, has added comfrey into its peat-free Wool
Compost range giving an extra super charge of nutrients and trace elements for
blooming, healthy plants.
Now with a hat-trick of
performance-packed natural ingredients - comfrey, bracken and sheep’s wool -
the Wool Compost range feeds plants for at least a season, requires less
watering, as wool cleverly retains moisture, and is Soil Association-approved
for organic gardening. Wool Compost is available in Potting, Seeds, Vegetables
& Salads, Tomatoes, Double Strength and Ericaceous1.
Comfrey is renowned in the
gardening world for being a plant superfood. It has very long roots so is able
to absorb nutrients deep in the soil as it grows, and when harvested and then
added to compost or a traditional comfrey tea, the nutrients give a growing
‘kick’ to other plants, encouraging strong, healthy growth.
The introduction of comfrey to the
compost mix marks the culmination of a five-year project by the Dalefoot team
to grow the plant on a commercial scale, sustainably on the farm, and harness
its extraordinary qualities. The fast-growing comfrey crop can be harvested
four times a year, so there is plenty on tap to meet rising demand for the
company’s premium composts in the future.
The company is also now sourcing
bracken from Exmoor, Northumberland and Wales, as well as locally in Cumbria –
helping a diversity of farming communities and local landscapes. Bracken is an
invasive plant but when harvested sustainably and composted, provides rich
potash for plants and acts as a fantastic soil conditioner. Sheep farmers are
benefitting too as supplying wool for the compost means they have a market for
a product they struggle to sell.
Dalefoot’s
peat-free products are unique as they use a fully-traceable, sustainable blend
of wool, bracken and now comfrey to make composts for every gardening need.
Wool releases a steady stream of nitrogen and other must-have nutrients which,
when combined with bracken and comfrey, means no further feed is required over
the growing season.
Professor Jane Barker of Dalefoot
Composts said: “Comfrey is a truly remarkable plant offering a multitude of
uses and we’re excited to grow it right here on the farm for our compost. We’ll
be looking at how we can use it in other products for the gardener in the
future.
“Our farm’s bees, insects and wildlife
are also benefitting from the biodiversity boost the new comfrey fields and
their nectar-rich flowers bring to the local environment.”
Over the past 12 months, compost
production has doubled at Dalefoot, with 177 garden centres and nurseries now stocking
its products.
The
Dalefoot team also restores peat bogs, some of which were once
owned by peat compost companies, across the UK for the likes of Natural
England, NatureScot, South West Water and wildlife trusts. Peat bogs store more
carbon than forests and many in the UK are now in poor condition, releasing
carbon rather than just storing it. To date, this work equates to 1
million tonnes of carbon emissions - equivalent to 500,000 flights from
London to New York - saved since Dalefoot started two decades ago.
The
range is available online at www.dalefootcomposts.co.uk from £11.99 per bag down to £8.50 each for orders of 50 bags plus
delivery, and also from a growing list of
stockists.
