Stabilisation

The covering of bare peat using moss-rich plant material, known as moss-rich nurse crop, to prevent damage from frost, drying, and erosion by wind. This plant material should be cut as locally as possible to the restoration site, to reduce the risk of spreading disease.

The plant material contains a mixture of heather, cottongrass, feather moss and sphagnum moss.

Machinery is used to cut and bag the moss-rich nurse crop, which is then airlifted to the restoration site to prevent damaging the sensitive ground. The moss-rich nurse crop is then spread by hand using pitchforks.

Using moss-rich nurse crop has proven to be a highly effective method to revegetate areas of bare peat. Preventing further erosion limits the carbon emissions released into the atmosphere and as a result mitigates climate change.