MNR, TUMCS

Project with Prof. Menrad on alternatives to peat-based potting soil in hobby gardening funded Peat-free gardening, protecting the climate

Although they make up only three percent of the land area, peatlands worldwide bind more carbon than all the forests on Earth combined. When peatlands are drained for peat extraction, this carbon is released into the atmosphere in the form of climate-damaging CO2. The Federal Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs (BMLEH) is therefore committed to ensuring that potting soils in hobby gardening become completely peat-free in the foreseeable future with its peat reduction strategy.

Five men standing in front of a wooden wall, each presenting a certificate.
Ursula Eisenmann/SRT

The project participants—including Prof. Klaus Menrad (2nd from right)—together with Federal Minister Alois Rainer (center) at the presentation of the funding decisions at the TUM Campus Straubing.

To support hobby gardeners in switching to peat-free alternatives, the BMLEH is funding a joint project with around 750,000 euros. On Monday, the Federal Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, Alois Rainer, presented the funding approval to the project partners at the TUM Campus Straubing. Among others, the Chair of Marketing and Management of Renewable Resources (Prof. Klaus Menrad) at Weihenstephan-Triesdorf University of Applied Sciences (HSWT) at the TUM Campus Straubing is involved in the project with “Subproject 3: Use of peat-free potting soils – everyday activities of hobby gardeners.” The project itself is called “HOT2 – Successful plant growth without peat; hobby gardening with peat-reduced and peat-free substrates based on renewable raw materials – Part 2.”

“Practical solutions that help in everyday life”

On the occasion of the announcement, Federal Minister Alois Rainer said: "Climate protection always works best when there are practical solutions that help in everyday life. This also applies to a hobby that many people in our country pursue with great dedication in their free time: gardening. With our funding, we are supporting a forward-looking project that further reduces the use of peat in hobby gardening and thus actively contributes to climate protection. Every bag of peat-free potting soil helps to reduce CO2 emissions."

As part of the funding project “Hobby gardening with peat-reduced and peat-free substrates based on renewable raw materials,” the Nürtingen-Geislingen University of Applied Sciences, the Erfurt University of Applied Sciences, and the Weihenstephan-Triesdorf University of Applied Sciences at the TUM Campus Straubing are developing practical concepts that directly support hobby gardeners in the successful use of alternative substrates. The project, which builds on the findings of a successful predecessor project, will be implemented by the Agency for Renewable Resources (FNR) from January 1, 2026, to September 30, 2027.

Further information can be found on the FNR website.

Press Release by BMLEH/TUMCS

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