I WOULD LIKE TO MAKE SEAWEED TEA TO FEED PLANTS..HOUSE AND GARDEN, BUT I CAN'T FIND ANY INFORMATION ON WHAT TO DO OR HOW TO MAKE IT. I WANT TO COLLECT SEAWEED AT THE OCEAN...AND THEN WHAT? RINSE IT WELL? HOW MUCH TO USE? MIX IT WITH ANYTHING ELSE? HOW LONG DO I LET IT STAND?

ANYONE HAVE THE ANSWERS?

THNKS,
MICHELE

Yes, my friend I can help you in that department!

Check out these FAQ hints I wrote on the OG forum on GardenWeb.com:

http://faq.gardenweb.com/faq/organic/

http://faq.gardenweb.com/faq/lists/organic/2002085416013761.html

http://faq.gardenweb.com/faq/lists/organic/2002080041031662.html


Happy Gardening!

THANKS WILLIAM, BUT THE WEBSITES DON'T ADDRESS HOW TO TREAT FRESH SEAWEED, WHICH IS VERY MUCH AT MY DISPOSAL HERE ON THE CALIFORNIA COAST. DO I RINSE IT OFF,AND SOAK FOR ???? THEN WHAT??

I CAN GET THE FISH PARTS WITHOUT ANY PROBLEM ALSO AND ADD THAT TO MY TWO COMPOST PILES. I USUALLY ADD 4 OR 5 YEAR OLD HORSE MANURE TO MY COMPOST PILES AND THROW IT INTO THE GARDEN AND ADD TO THE POTTED PLANTS.

THANKS,
MICHELE

Some OG people are concerned about the salt content on fresh seaweed. However, there is an ongoing debate on that subject. I believe it is common believe that sea salt is far more beneficial to the health of our human bodies and the health of soil organisms than just plain ole common salt.

I know several OG farmers that live near beaches that use fresh seaweed from the beaches, unwashed, straight on their soils as organic mulches around tomatoes, etc.

If you use fresh fish, always mix this with good high carbon browns like sawdust or hay, in order to preserve the precious organic nitrogen from evaporation or leaching during decompostion. The browns will also help mask the funky odors.

If you like you can bury both fish and seaweed straight in your garden beds in a trench composting style.

There have been several studies that indicate that sea salts are VERY beneficial to the soil. I do not have any citations but have read a few articles in Acres USA about this. If I had access to kelp i would not wash it before using in the garden.

A wonderful resource for info on compost teas (or in your case kelp tea) is
http://www.soilfoodweb.com

Dr Elaine Ingrahm is THE expert on compost teas and how to properly make them. Go there and ask her directly what to do about kelp. She usually answers such questions (or the info may already be there). She has imparted a lot of info about compost teas in general on SANET the past week. You can see the archives at http://www.sare.org/htdocs/hypermail/hypermail.html

LUCY AND WILLIAM,

THANK-YOU BOTH FOR ANSWERING MY QUESTIONS ABOUT KELP TEA, AND SENDING ME THE SITES.

HAPPY GARDENING,
MICHELE