Well they don't use raw peat, not any more, haven't done for some time now. Most are either significantly reduced peat, or no peat at all, depending on what you bought in the first place. Recipes for potting compost vary on what you might be growing, but you can always add Growmore or something similar to the mixture and then plant.
Even so, there are risks in reusing old potting compost - there may be beasties residing in the pots, or infection from last year. Much better to spread it over your borders and flowerbeds as a mulch, the ultimate form of recycling.
P.S. - this 'save the planet' thing - the planet will be absolutely fine, nothing will happen to it - it's us who will be wiped out, the planet will recover very nicely, thanks.

I agree with Bamboo I use all my spent compost as a mulch.
Amen about the planet.

Pure peat composts are still available if you know where to look.
Spreading nasties from old composts on the garden border is not a good idea.
Garden centre composts rely on mixing "green waste" with peat and other things. Can cause just as many problems as the nasties from old composts, ie, just what have people put in their bins that councils collect and then make into compost to sell to the compost manufacturers.
As the planet will be fine, why all the fuss about banning peat from composts?

Because, Scrumpyg, we would all quite like to continue living on it, rather than being drowned, scorched, frozen, choked, or starved to death...

What's that got to do with peat?

The peat bogs are being depleted at a rate of knotts which is destroying the eco system. I'm surprised you hadn't heard. Non peat based composts have been going for years! There is absolutely no need to use peat based composts.

I was quite shocked last year to find a great pile of sacks full of pure peat compost in our local Agricultural/horticultural suppliers' depot, originating from Latvia.

In Ireland, Russia and Finland they use peat to produce electricity in their power stations. In Ireland and Scotland they still burn peat in their home fires. Ecological disasters are a scam thought up by various governments to fleece the public into paying more in taxes. The real crux of the matter is the world population explosion which governments seem to turn a blind eye to.

'Saving the Plant' (and us) would be done better by people growing flowers that attract bees who are apparently having a tough time of it lately! Grow 'open' flowers, like daisies, and bees will thrive. Without bees and other pollinators everything will die - including us.

Well, now, there's a cheerful start to the day!

thanks very much for those observations. Much appreciated

I am sure the few thousands of people who burn peat in their homes, don't contribute to as much damage as the millions and millions of people who buy peat composts at their local garden centres, destroying the peat bogs. Government fleecing or not, I am sure we all agree with growing more pollinating flowers but we weren't talking about them here.

Erm, Cammomile, I'm afraid that's completely wrong - burning of peat for fuel uses far more than peat composts ever did.

Don't burst Cammomiles' bubble, she's on a roll.
The trouble with the eco friendy types is that they believe everything they read in the papers, yet ignore the real problems.
Governments take the easy option of hitting and brainwashing gardeners into using these non peat composts of hers that contrary to what she may say are not a patch on traditional composts.....people on here moan about them,etc, etc. Unless of course you want inferior plants, in which case they are wonderful.

If the eco system of the planet is to be saved then i suggest people lobby their MP and ask what they are doing about the Chinese and the Americans who between them account for the majority of CO2 emissions that are responsible for this alleged global warming. Especially them Chinese.
In the meantime, buy your peat as normal and make up your own eco friendly compost.

I don't agree Scrumpy. I trail off to the recycling centre all the time, rigorously recycling anything that they'll take, time consuming and tedious though it is. I'll admit I feel as if I've turned up after 9/11 with a dustpan and brush, but that's not the point - change comes about through small chips, like creating a large statue - everyone contributing small chips creates a bigger wave of change. So, despite the fact I'll probably not live long enough to see the climate settle down again, I still make the effort. It's also possible to grow good plants in peat free - so long as you buy the right one (New Horizon organic peat free is good) but I do believe seedlings and houseplants do better in peat based. If we just stuck to that tiny amount of peat for seed composts, that's a huge improvement. I just do what I can, where I can - I can't change the situation for the better single handed, but at least I'll have made an effort, held up my end, and taken some responsibility.

hence the recycling....one bag of peat lasting for years means less peat bought.....
I've not bought seed compost in 10 years. I reuse the compost i grow my sweet peas in.
I've used the same compost for rooting dahlias for the last 10 years.....i root over 200 cuttings every year and very rarely lose any.
End of season compost from the flower tubs goes back into them them next year. To me, that is the ultimate in recycling.
If people feel happy reccycling as you do, in the belief that you are doing your bit for the next generation, then carry on.
My way of looking at it is that we are being penalised because the poor old man in the street, or garden, is an easy target for these useless politicians who haven't the inclination or the guts to tackle the real problems. We shouldn't be forced to accept 2nd best all the time.

Surely a lot of the point of recycling is that the supply of raw materials is finite and if we carry on using it up and then throwing it away the supply will eventually run out. I hate waste and recycle everything I can, but haven't so far reused potting compost except as mulch.

The population of the world expanding so much is the biggest problem to the survival of the planet. The more the people the more food you need, the more water you need, the more houses you need, the more cars there are, the more electricity you need. Reducing the peat in composts and toddling off to recycling tips, no matter how many millions do it, is a drop in the ocean compared to sorting out all the above.
But that's not a gardening forum discussion.

I don't class myself as an eco friendly type at all - just a gardener, and I really have no interest in getting into a deep 'twitter' about saving the planet. As you say that's not a gardening forum discussion. I wasn't looking globally at the question but in the UK where only 0.3% of peatland is used for fuel.

As a bit of a side issue, I saw in an issue of Gardening which today that there have been some controlled experiments on reusing old potting compost with added fertiliser and the results were very positive - as long as we remember to check for pests first! I was surprised, after all the discussions on here lately.

So will you be trying it?
If so, chempak BTD is the fertiliser to use.

Have you any idea what the constituents and ratios of Chempak BTD are, Graham? I'd really like to do this with all the compost I use, but of course, products and brand names are different here, and not being in a part of the world famed for it's love of gardening, I have to do the best I can with what's available.

good tip scumpygrat. will certainly try it.watch this space

Opinions in the horticultural world about reusing composts differ - some experts think its fine, provided you check for pests and add some feed, others don't agree. I've certainly reused compost, even if its just mixed with newer stuff, and often have added feed to the previous year's stuff. But I did get caught out once - I didn't realise the pansies which had died over winter had keeled over from pansy sickness -because the compost was bone dry, I assumed the client just hadn't watered. I reused it for more pansies, and they all died, of course... so sometimes, problems with the compost are not actually visible.

Gattina,

Chempak BTD is a combined quick and slow release product, formula

N.P.K = 6-8-10 + Trace Elements

I would guess sulphate of potash, superphosphate and sulphate of ammonia provide the N,P, K.
I would guess the trace elements come from seaweed of some sort.
They recommend to also add dolomite of lime.

To get N,P and K levels from the above inorganic chemicals involves a simple bit of maths so you can make up what you want.
For K..potassium...1 part K is found in 2g of Potash
For N...nitrogen... 1 part N is found in 5g of sulphate of ammonia
for P...phosphorous....1 part P is found in 5.4g superphosphate

so if you wanted a fertiliser of N 6, P8, K10 as near as possible to BTD i think you would need

30g Ammonium Sulphate (N)....6x5
43.2 g Superphosphate (P).....8x5.4
20g Sulphate of Potash (K5).....10x2

To get your trace elements add 25g crushed seaweed and magnesium add 20g dolomite of lime. If you can't get dolomite, then maybe epsom salts...Magnesium Sulphate, probably a tablespoon.
All of the above mixed together is enough for 30 L of compost equivalent to a John Innes no1, or a first potting compost.

For a John Innes no2 equivalent/2nd potting compost mix it into 15L of compost.

That's as good as i can do, so i hope those chemicals are available to you. The slow release part of the formula cannot be made, but everything else if it's available will get you a good mix.

Wow, thank you, SG, you've gone to a lot of trouble for me. I think if I go to my local agrarian consorzio (farm suppliers), they are very knowledgeable and may be able to come up with something if not identical, then very similar, and I can tweak it with additions. I have never heard of dolomite of lime - maybe if I googled it in both English and Italian I may get the answer. Seaweed? I wonder where I'd get seaweed? Maybe a trip to the coast is called for.......

I tried to buy sulphate of potash as usual this year and found it had gone up to £8 for an ordinary size box, which I refuse to pay, so made do with Growmore instead and am hoping my gooseberries will crop as heavily as usual. Incidentally dolomite of lime is a misnomer. You can have dolomite and you can have lime but not dolomite of lime. Dolomite is a naturally occurring rock, calcium magnesium carbonate. Pure lime is produced industrially. Lime is calcium oxide or calcium hydroxide and doesn't often occur naturally. Whether you add lime to your compost will depend on what you want to grow in it.

I hadn't heard of ChemPTD - will look out for it - thank you.

Try these as well

http://www.agrofill.com/company.html

This one sounds good

http://www.agrofill.com/fertilizers-for-compost-integration/agroplant-12-14-24-4.html

Apart from making composts, the formula i've given can be used in the garden, so you can adjust the NPK to suit your crops. Quantity to be applied is per square yard..............

TO Steragram,

I believe that dolomite of lime has both magnesium and calcium carbonates.At least that's what it says on the pack.
I always mix it into tomato composts for obvious reasons. That is a chempak product too ( i say chempak , but they have re named themselves, but will always be chempak to me)

As to cost of fertilisers, i find Wilkinsons very cheap, but get all mine in big packs here

http://www.gardendirect.co.uk/garden-care?zenid=3i578hncvbcudoarso7t0vv104

Can I just say .... I'm reading this in open-mouthed awe! I NEVER understood chemistry at school, I continue not to understand it but have huge respect for people who seem to have it almost as a second language! Wow!

Just as a bit of an aside to this thread. Originally, Bamboo said that the manufacturers don't use raw peat anymore.
That is true for what you see in the garden centres, etc, but as i mentioned seaweed going into composts thought i'd give you this link from Westland. Apart from the vast reduced peat range they do, they also make this

http://www.gardenhealth.com/products/compost-and-growing-media/universal/jacks-magic-all-purpose-compost/

I've used it before for growing veg in cells before planting out with good results. Trouble is finding someone who sells it at a good price. It is 90% peat and 10% loam.