Now is the time of year to think about adding seaweed to your garden. Pre-winter storms this week have brought a lot of seaweed to the shore, piling it up along the high-tide line. Not only is gathering seaweed good for your garden, it also gives you an opportunity to see some of the sub-tidal seaweeds. Usually, these are not usually visible without a wet suit and diving gear.
At Miracle Beach, I was able to gather several garbage bags full of seaweed. I took the bags back to our garden in Courtenay. Since I was actually out after dark so I didn’t have a chance to examine closely what I was putting into the bags. Ideally I was hoping for some of the finer seaweed like Sea Lettuce (Ulva spp.) that breaks down easily. I knew from touch that most of the algae that I was gathering was already broken down by wave action.
On Sunday, I returned to the beach. However, much of the seaweed had moved on down the shore due to long shore drift. What remained was partially buried under a layer of sand and gravel, deposited by wave and wind action. I considered myself lucky to have collected my garden seaweed on the previous day.
Seaweed Samples
I was able to pick a few samples from the strandline and photograph them before the rain began in earnest. Here’s some of the seaweed that I found:
Good morning, Dave.
I am so impressed with your ability to identify these down to the species. I have another challenge for you. I took this photo in Carmel, CA: http://www.flickr.com/photos/godutchbaby/3982152233/sizes/l/in/set-72157622396880159/
These are the dried out buds that wash up on the beach. I would appreciate any info you have on these. Thanks!
I gave you a shout-out this morning on my Macro Monday post. Thanks again for your expertise!
Hello Go Dutch Baby,
Thanks for the comment and the compliment! I think that your seaweed is either Macrocystis integrifolia or Macrocystis pyrifera – also known as the Small Giant Kelp. According to Marine Life of the Pacific Northwest (Andy Lamb) the latter (M. pyrifera) is common and extensively harvested in California. The difference between the two is the shape of the holdfast – creeping rhizome-like for M. integrifolia and tall and cone shape for M. pyrifera. You might want to Google both of those Latin names and compare images or look through your images to see if you have any photographs of the holdfast itself.
Cheers,
Dave