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Sea weed

jamesholtjamesholt Posts: 551
Every day they clean up truck loads of sea weed to throw away.  It seems there could be a use for it.
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  • Silver surferSilver surfer Posts: 4,581
    edited March 2021
      I have turned your pic. More below.
    In Scotland generations of crofters collected sea weed to fertilise the thin soils on the islands such as Uist.
    As it rots down it is prone to smell.
    More here...
    https://croft.garden/2014/01/29/marine-harvest/

    http://machairlife.org.uk/ML-Seaweed-Advice-leaflet.pdf


    Perthshire. SCOTLAND .
  • Allotment BoyAllotment Boy Posts: 6,414
    Seaweed is an excellent soil conditioner, so long as you wash the salt off. 
    AB Still learning

  • Silver surferSilver surfer Posts: 4,581
    edited March 2021
    On Uist I guess the rain washes out the salt while it is decomposing in heaps before being spread.

    http://machairlife.org.uk/ML-Seaweed-Advice-leaflet.pdf

    Quote link above..
    "Known locally as ‘tangle’, kelp species (Laminaria sp.) are washed ashore by winter storms and collected fresh from the beach when the tides and winds allow. Seaweed is then left in piles for several weeks to start decomposing, which concentrates the nutrients and reduces its volume for spreading. Rotten seaweed is spread on machair plots during late winter or early spring before they are cultivated by plough or rotovator. "

    KEY POINTS • 15 tonnes/hectare of rotten seaweed can meet the nitrogen and phosphate requirement of a crop on machair soil • Seaweed also increases organic matter and provides trace elements • As well as feeding the soil, seaweed can help stabilise it and prevent erosion

    etc etc
    Perthshire. SCOTLAND .
  • FireFire Posts: 17,322
    Why do they clear away the weed James?
  • Silver surferSilver surfer Posts: 4,581
    I have seen this done in many places...leaving pristine clear beaches for the tourists.
    No one would want to sit on a beach amongst stinking sea weed.
    Perthshire. SCOTLAND .
  • jamesholtjamesholt Posts: 551
    I believe silver surfer is correct but was hoping it could be used instead of thrown away.
  • nick615nick615 Posts: 1,458
    I'm assuming that, because beaches are notoriously inaccessible, if only to stop the public driving their cars on to them, this perfectly valid exercise becomes impractical and thus uneconomic.  Everything above is well founded but using seaweed 'raw', straight off the beach, on a plot can be a good deterrent for slugs via the salt content.
  • Silver surferSilver surfer Posts: 4,581
    jamesholt said:
    I believe silver surfer is correct but was hoping it could be used instead of thrown away.
    Yes it is possible, but needs someone with a business, money, lorries,tractors and a huge vacant area to stack it all while it breaks down.
    Maybe writing to your local newspaper or contacting a TV station you could start the idea of someone doing this.

    Perthshire. SCOTLAND .
  • Allotment BoyAllotment Boy Posts: 6,414
    There are companies who use it to make liquid fertiliser and other similar products.  Maybe they could sell it to one of those. 
    AB Still learning

  • jamesholtjamesholt Posts: 551
    Can the moss from the pond be used?
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