Seaweed Tea... stuff

[Nocturnal]

Hey-o.

Last year... probably a good 8 months ago, I gathered a big ole' shopping bag of fresh sea weed down at the edge of Puget Sound and I rinsed it thuroughly and let it steep in a bucket under my porch with just a large plant saucer over the top... little bits of oyster shell and the odd nasty seaworm alike all in there... Shortly after making the mixture I ran off around the globe again, so I just hoped my family wouldn't dump the bucket out. But anyway, it's been sitting out there all this time. Is the stuff inside useful at all, and what should I do with it? I gave it a stir, it's pretty blackish green, and the stick brought up some entire pieces of seaweed.

It was my first attempt. I hope it's good for something! Could I use it as an activator for my compost or for a straw bale garden?

 

[Chuck]

Hey-o.

Last year... probably a good 8 months ago, I gathered a big ole' shopping bag of fresh sea weed down at the edge of Puget Sound and I rinsed it thuroughly and let it steep in a bucket under my porch with just a large plant saucer over the top... little bits of oyster shell and the odd nasty seaworm alike all in there... Shortly after making the mixture I ran off around the globe again, so I just hoped my family wouldn't dump the bucket out. But anyway, it's been sitting out there all this time. Is the stuff inside useful at all, and what should I do with it? I gave it a stir, it's pretty blackish green, and the stick brought up some entire pieces of seaweed.

It was my first attempt. I hope it's good for something! Could I use it as an activator for my compost or for a straw bale garden?

What you now have will be great to add to your compost pile or fed to your plants, but it will not activate anything, it is dead. There are no beneficial bacteria or fungi in the mix or at least very few if any. Bacteria and fungi are like you and I, they need oxygen to survive and they long ago used up the oxygen in the water which has been anaerobic for months now. It is full of minerals and still very useful.

 

[Nocturnal]

Well, I wasn't thinking "starter" in the sense of adding bacteria, but more of as in feeding the existing bacteria with nitrogen. But I don't actually know anything about it, I just read that in starting straw bale gardens they water the bales down and feed them with high nitrogen fertilizers to kickstart the existing bacteria within by feeding it. I am not totally knowledgeable on how it all works though, but I guessed it might work the same with compost containing existing bacteria.

Thanks though, I'll probably start using it once blossoms have been set.

 

[headfullofbees]

It'll be fantastic for your soil; seaweed picks up all the minerals in the sea and can add up to SIXTY micronutrients to your soil.
The alginates are great for water retention too.
It contains available potash and is tops for tomatoes and potatoes.
For seaweed leachate you have to wait a minimum of three months, so what you have is vintage soil tonic.
You can also dilute it 5 water to1 tea to make a wonderful foliar spray, which will make your plants more cold/drought tolerant and improve disease resistance.
It's VERY good stuff.
I bring back six bin-bags full of seaweed (there's tons there, so no environmental impact) every time I go to our static caravan.

 

[Nocturnal]

Thanks for your reply! I'm excited to witness it's affects in the garden. I took a bit of it today just to put some in the compost, and boy does that stuff wreak!

 

[granjera]

You may have a creature beneath your porch. I'm no sci-fi fan, but I can see how your experiment could easily go awry.

 

[headfullofbees]

Thanks for your reply! I'm excited to witness it's affects in the garden. I took a bit of it today just to put some in the compost, and boy does that stuff wreak!

Few years ago the house next door to ours was up for sale. (Put on the market by the children of the owner, now deceased, who they stuck in a granny farm)
If I didn't like the look of prospective buyers, I would get the lid off my bucket of seaweed extract/tea, and give it a good stir;