Biochar – a form of charcoal used as a soil improver – has produced impressive results in the the UK’s first commercial biochar trials with professional growers and gardeners.

The trioals suggest that biochar helps to boost root growth, reduces the need to water, improves germination rates and results in stronger, healthier plants which are more resilient to disease and changing weather conditions.

The independent trials were commissioned by Bristol-based Carbon Gold, who produce a range of Soil Association approved, peat-free, biochar growing products. The products are stocked by a number of garden centres.

Trials with 19 professional users found that Carbon Gold composts - and personal compost mixes enriched with GroChar Soil Improver (made up of 90% biochar) performed as well as, and in some cases better, than peat.

Craig Sams, founder of Carbon Gold and co-founder of Green & Blacks chocolate, will be launching the results at the Soil Association Soil Symposium next Thursday (15 November) to an audience of soil experts, farmers and growers.

The results come at a time when Defra is deliberating the report from their Sustainable Growing Media Task Force and deciding how best to reduce peat in both professional horticulture and amateur gardening. Biochar is one of the amendments to growing media being considered as an alternative to peat.

Biochar trialist Martin Kyte, field trials manager at Rijk Zwaan, said: “I initially started trialling Carbon Gold’s GroChar Composts against a peat-based compost, but the results were so good I stopped the peat trials and progressed solely with propagating in GroChar.”

Jez Taylor, Market Gardener at Daylesford Organic Farm said switching from their usual compost to Carbon Gold had cut water usage by a third, as  the GroChar compost was less prone to drying out.

Information: www.carbongold.com