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Seaweed is thought to have evolved approximately three and half billion years ago and archaeological records show we realised seaweed benefits many thousands of years ago. The use of seaweeds as a food and plant fertiliser has a long history, be it collected from the wild or for a small number of species actively cultivated.
Ancient Greeks fed their animals with seaweeds and in the UK, seaweed harvesting became popular in 1200 AD and sea “veggies” were important in the diet in Scotland and Ireland.
In Japan, the past 2,000 years have seen many seaweed uses. Currently
there are at least six types of seaweeds
in a typical diet and Japan has a multi-million dollar Nori ( a red Pyropia
species of seaweed used for Sushi and rice balls) farming industry. Western culture is beginning to understand the benefits of seaweeds, and we have an increasing range of choices that allow us to make seaweed part of our daily lives: as supplements, dried, fresh, in soups, in breads, as spaghetti, as ice-cream...
The full benefits and properties of liquid seaweed are still being discovered and can include:
- Promoting vigorous growth and helping deter pests and diseases on fruit, flowers, vegetables, lawns etc.
- Boosting crop yields, improving resistance of plants to frost and disease, increases uptake of inorganic constituents from the soil, bolsters resistance to stress conditions
- Contains almost every micro-nutrient in a fully chelated (immediately available) form. Seaweed is also full of carbohydrates, which plants use as a building block. Numerous beneficial microorganisms also use carbohydrates as a food source.
- Acts as a soil conditioner. The alginates react with metals in the soil and form long, cross-linked polymers. These polymers improve the crumbling in the soil and swell up when they get wet. They also retain moisture for a long time.
- Extends the shelf life of fruits and vegetables if applied 10 days before harvesting.
- Lengthens the life of cut flowers if they are sprayed with it a day or two before cutting.
- Can be used as a rooting solution. Place cuttings in a solution of liquid seaweed and water until roots develop, then plant. When planting seeds or transplanting, water with the solution.
- If applied to pasture crops, seaweed can increase the nutrient uptake, the protein content and overall quality of the crop.
Our liquid seaweed is fermented in large tanks for over three months to allow the nutrients to dissolve into the water. The resulting seaweed liquid concentrate is an excellent source of soil-nutrients. It contains nitrogen, magnesium, potassium, iodine, calcium, amino acids, macro and micro-nutrients, vitamins, auxins, cytokinin, and abscisic acid (ABA), and other trace minerals and nutrients that help protect cells from damage.
Best applied under cool conditions and at regular intervals.
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