A Penrith firm’s peat-free compost range has been shortlisted for a prestigious award.
Dalefoot Composts’ Wool Compost with Comfrey, launched earlier this year, has been nominated for the first ever RHS Chelsea Sustainable Garden Product of the Year Award.
The Family-owned Dalefoot Composts said it spent five years perfecting the addition of comfrey, a plant superfood, into its popular peat-free Wool Compost range.
Known as the organic gardener’s best friend, comfrey has high levels of potassium, phosphorous and nitrogen for healthy plant growth, larger flowers and bigger crops.
Comfrey is now grown sustainably at Dalefoot farm near Heltondale as a commercial crop.
Professor Jane Barker, of Dalefoot Composts, said: “As firm believers in true sustainability – social, economic and environmental – our team is over the moon to get this recognition and be shortlisted.
“We take real care to employ environmental best practice at Dalefoot, from the sourcing and harvesting of ingredients, to packaging and delivery.”
The compost also includes bracken, which the company sources from Exmoor, Northumberland and Wales, as well as Cumbria.
Bracken is an invasive plant but when harvested sustainably and composted, provides rich potash for plants and acts as a fantastic soil conditioner, the firm said.
Over the past 12 months, compost production has doubled at Dalefoot, with more than 175 garden centres and nurseries now stocking its products.
