The Beach site growline, 7 weeks after seeding. The translucent, yellowish, blades are the sugar kelp. Everything else is different types of algae, aka “fouling.”
For the first 3-4 weeks, there appeared to be little to no kelp growth. Moreover, the growlines continued to collect fouling which made it difficult to see the seedstring, let alone the minuscule sporophytes that had developed in the lab/nursery.
Then, around the 5th week, short (1-3cm), translucent, yellowish blades with crinkled edges could be spotted protruding from the lines. This growth was sparse – a blade or two every couple feet – but it was indeed sugar kelp. Two weeks later and more kelp growth was visible. 🙌
Kelp on the Beach site growline, ~6cm long.
The Island site, 7 weeks after seeding: growth is low and slow but it’s not nothing (and it’s better than it looks in this pic).
You look great but please keep growing.
Any growth is better than no growth, and according to our friends at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI), our humble, less-than-two-month-old kelp blades aren’t too bad. That said, the growth is not dense, and we know there are other farms in Massachusetts waters that are showing significantly more progress. There is a range of factors to be considered when comparing growth from one farm to the next; from the density of the seedspools used, to the date seeded, water conditions (ie. nutrient levels, temperature, clarity), prevalence of competing organisms, and more. These are all factors that I’ll be investigating over the coming months, and sharing here.
Environmental Data
Speaking of water conditions, we happily agreed to collect environmental data for WHOI: water temps via a temperature logger attached to the Beach site array, and water samples at both sites. These water samples will be primarily analyzed for nitrogen levels, as nitrogen is a key ingredient for sugar kelp growth.
⏭ Check-up at 8 weeks / Nitrogen
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