Farmers

Sustainable farmland can create a thriving business

How can farmers make a good living off their boglands? Paludiculture – or wetland farming –  is the growth of commercial, profitable crops on rewetted wet bogs and fens. These include:

Sphagnum moss 

• Significantly reduce flooding
• Contribute to the restoration of the bog
• Benefit air quality
• Create cleaner rivers and water systems 

Typha 

Also known as bulrush or cattail, typha can be used as: 

• A nutritious food
• A sustainable building material
• Biofuel
• An alternative to paper made from wood pulp 
• An animal feed

Berries

Blueberries and cranberries thrive in acidic and moist growing environments.

Paludiculture: A win for farmers, a win for the environment 

On a wetland, where the water level is near to the surface, the bog or fen acts as a carbon sink. This reduces greenhouse gas emissions, water pollution and soil degradation. It also increases biodiversity, benefiting local communities and the wider environment. 

Palus Demos is working with farmers, industry, researchers and policymakers across three demonstration sites in Ireland, the UK and the Netherlands. Instead of draining the bogs for fuel or traditional agriculture, the Palus Demos project will:

• Demonstrate the commercial viability of growing crops on wetlands
• Develop new European markets for paludiculture products
• Explore new agricultural business models for paliduculture 
• Make farming viable for future generations by ensuring that bog land can be used for sustainable farming
• Create benefits for the environment and help to reduce carbon emissions
• Provide potential additional income for peatland farmers by selling carbon credits

Farmers may be able to earn up to €33,000 per hectare per year from paludiculture. 

Case study: John O’Sullivan, Derreighter Farm

“We own bogland in Connemara. We see that there is a shift towards more climate-friendly solutions in farming. We know that, as the climate gets wetter, we need more resilient crops. We had been working for blueberries for over 20 years, and now we are exploring options for other crops. 

My father farmed this land before me, digging turf which he sold as fuel. He was skeptical at first, as were many people locally. But last year we ordered about 150 blueberry plants from the Netherlands, and various neighbours bought and planted the crops themselves.

We are interested in the science behind paliduculture, and the positive environmental benefits. More than this, it provides an alternative income stream for farmers.

My wife, Kate, holds workshops here and runs an AirBnB. We have sheep on the land, too. We both have our own enterprises on the farm, and it is only through that diversity that we can make it profitable.”

– John O’Sullivan, Derreighter Farm