Free Fertilizer and Mulch right outside your front door!

Don’t complain about how it looks, harvest it! Mayan Garden club tip of the month—

Information From NOAA : National Ocean Service

Did you know that the sargassum (sea weed) on the beach is really good fertilizer for your plants? Just pick some up and work it into the soil. Farmers in the Bermuda Islands harvest it and use it for all their crops. It is full of nutrients!  There has been some question of washing the salt water out before placing in beds, but it is successfully working for many just straight from the sea.  You may want to read more at http://www.gisbarbados.gov.bb/index.php?categoryid=13&p2_articleid=6479

What is Sargassum and where does it come from?

The Sargasso Sea is home to seaweed of the genus Sargassum, which floats en masse on the surface there. The sargassum is not a threat to shipping, and historic incidents of sailing ships being trapped there are due to the often calm winds of the horse latitudes.^[5]

The Sargasso Sea also plays a major role in the migration of eels. The larvae hatch there then migrate to Europe or the east coast of North America. Later in life, they try to return to the Sargasso Sea to lay eggs. It is also believed that after hatching, young Loggerhead Sea Turtles use currents to travel to the Sargasso Sea, where they use the sargassum as cover from predators until they are mature.

Commercial fish, such as tuna, and birds also migrate through the Sargasso Sea and depend on it for food.

While all other seas in the world are defined at least in part by land boundaries, the Sargasso Sea is defined only by ocean currents. It lies within the Northern Atlantic Subtropical Gyre. The Gulf Stream establishes the Sargasso Sea’s western boundary, while the Sea is further defined to the north by the North Atlantic Current, to the east by the Canary Current, and to the south by the North Atlantic Equatorial Current. Since this area is defined by boundary currents, its borders are dynamic, correlating roughly with the Azores High Pressure Center for any particular season.

Remember, our recent influx of sargasso originates in river deltas off the coast of Brazil.

NB: Mayan Garden club meetings will resume in the fall.