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Fresh Kelp on the Beach

Yes, try to get fresh stuff as after 24 hours of being dead the kelp will leech a lot of the goodness out of it. You can harvest a few plants from the rocks, just take a knife (blunt is fine) and remove the kelp from the rock by jamming in the knife below the holdfast (the bit that attaches to the rock). The rock should crumble and the whole kelp will come off. Don't just cut the stipe (stem) from the holdfast as the kelp will die and no kelp will be able to grow on that place for a few seasons at least.
 
Celtic67 said:
Yes, try to get fresh stuff as after 24 hours of being dead the kelp will leech a lot of the goodness out of it. You can harvest a few plants from the rocks, just take a knife (blunt is fine) and remove the kelp from the rock by jamming in the knife below the holdfast (the bit that attaches to the rock). The rock should crumble and the whole kelp will come off. Don't just cut the stipe (stem) from the holdfast as the kelp will die and no kelp will be able to grow on that place for a few seasons at least.
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I was talking more about the pieces I see washed up on the beach...
 
Ahh, the wonderful green of envy...
 
Here in Hungary, kelp is totally unknown. There's only one source carrying kelp meal (coarse) and there is only one liquid kelp extract available (Wuxal Ascofol). The meal is priced acceptably; USD31 for 5 kg, but the liquid is ridiculous - 19 bucks for a liter, or 150 for 10 liter. Thanks, but no thanks...
 
What would be the best way to use the coarse meal?
 
EDIT: Just found a new one, the importer calls it simply Alginure. I checked the manufacturer's homepage; there are 11 versions, and I have no idea which is the Hungarian-labeled one. I don't mind honestly, because asking USD220 for a 10 liter jug is even more insane than the previous one... BTW the manufacturer charges between 3-7 Euros for a liter.
 
Proud Marine Dad said:
Just don't take too much as it supports life on the beach as well. :)
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Kelp is very sustainable. It grows over 5% a day! There is no way small harvesting would effect the ecology of the shore. As long as you harvest by removing the holdfast, new sporophytes will generally recolonise the rock very quickly.
 
Proud Marine Dad said:
Just passing on what I was told my friend. ;)
 
PS I would love to go to Ireland as my mom was Irish.
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No worries, I am just saying there is nothing to worry about. It's like to going out to a forest in autumn and worrying about taking a bin bag full of leaves.
 
Hell hath no fury like an Irish woman scorned :P 
 
It's a nice place to visit, but too cold/wet to live (and grow peppers!!)
 
Plenty of Kelp down here in OZ. In fact, some particular beaches I know are knee deep with the stuff at certain times of the year. Makes life difficult getting out of the water after a dive....
 
For anybody else reading this thread, I will harvest the Sargassum that washes up on our beaches here in Florida. I get it while it's still light to tan color, before it dies and begins leaching. I rinse it thoroughly in tubs of cold water, and do it again the next day. Then, it sits in a clean composting bin, until I decide to use it. Usually I ferment it, but due to the tendency to smell like raw sewage, that may not be for everyone. I also process it in a food processor, and send it to the worm bins.

Any way you look at it, there is a lot of good stuff in the ocean.
 
solid7 said:
For anybody else reading this thread, I will harvest the Sargassum that washes up on our beaches here in Florida. I get it while it's still light to tan color, before it dies and begins leaching. I rinse it thoroughly in tubs of cold water, and do it again the next day. Then, it sits in a clean composting bin, until I decide to use it. Usually I ferment it, but due to the tendency to smell like raw sewage, that may not be for everyone. I also process it in a food processor, and send it to the worm bins.Any way you look at it, there is a lot of good stuff in the ocean.
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"And the sea may bring each man new life as sleep brings dreams" Christopher Columbus
 
I will be at the beach this weekend; hopefully I remember to grab some kelp. Whats the word on kelp in a worm composter?
 
ColdSmoke said:
I will be at the beach this weekend; hopefully I remember to grab some kelp. Whats the word on kelp in a worm composter?
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The word is YES, and it works even better when you run it through a food processor, first.  You won't get much better vermicompost.
 
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