As many of us know, wool as a natural fibre is bio-degradable and in fact can be an excellent fertiliser or soil conditioner. Wool Shoddy (ground up waste wool) has long been recognised as a wonderful slow release source on Nitrogen by farmers and gardeners alike. In the 1950's the Brussels sprouts field of Bedfordshire in England were cheered up by the different coloured wools making up the shoddy which were put on the sprout land. The famous rhubarb triangle of Yorkshire has always valued wool as a major component of organic mulch for growers of "forced Rhubarb". Currently in New Zealand AgResearch's Textile Team is looking into converting Wool carpet into a slow release fertiliser returning natural materials to the soil. The project involved grinding up wool carpet and mixing the shredded product into the soil to grow grass. The result of this "Grass to Grass" recycling was quite staggering- the soil containing the crushed wool carpet saw a 60% increase in dry matter production compared to the standard soil tested. The biggest growth rate was over a dry summer, where the wool carpet fertiliser worked to retain moisture in the soil. For full details of this programme please follow the link to AgResearch NZ.