Editing Peat (section)

===Agriculture===
{{See also|Potting soil#Peat}}
[[File:Peatcuttingulsta.jpg|thumb|Worked bank in [[blanket bog]], near [[Ulsta]], [[Yell, Shetland|Yell]], [[Shetland Islands]]]]
In Sweden, farmers use dried peat to absorb excrement from cattle that are wintered indoors.{{Citation needed|date=March 2024}} The most essential property of peat is retaining moisture in container soil when it is dry while preventing the excess water from killing roots when it is wet. Peat can store [[nutrient]]s although it is not fertile itself—it is [[Polyelectrolyte|polyelectrolytic]] with a high ion-exchange capacity due to its oxidized lignin.{{Citation needed|date=March 2024}} Peat is discouraged as a soil amendment by the [[Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew]], England, since 2003.<ref>{{cite web|title=Peat-free compost at Kew| publisher = RBG Kew| year = 2011 | url = http://www.kew.org/visit-kew-gardens/garden-attractions-A-Z/kids-attractions/compost-heap.htm| access-date = 2011-06-24|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110916065726/http://www.kew.org/visit-kew-gardens/garden-attractions-A-Z/kids-attractions/compost-heap.htm|archive-date=2011-09-16|url-status=dead}}</ref> While bark or [[coir]]-based peat-free potting soil mixes are on the rise, particularly in the UK, peat is still used as raw material for [[horticulture]] in some other European countries, Canada, as well as parts of the United States.