Seaweed…

Sunday we escaped to the sea. First, windy Jacob Riis Park Beach, a mere half hour from the yard, where the beaches are wide, the waves are high, and the children are hyper. Then, with swimsuits full of sand, we decided to seek out quieter shores, and snuck into a Breezy Point beach, facing the city instead of the sea and sheltered from the wind.

There we played soccer, read books, laid out, and…collected seaweed.

According to The Frugal Gardener, the green stinky stuff is great for gardens, full of nutrients.

Some fertilizers even have it as an ingredient.

So we pulled out some plastic bags and collected a couple pounds of seaweed, stranded on the beach and floating by the shore. (We also saw huge pink jellyfish, but didn’t think that would do the trick).

When we got home, I washed the seaweed to take out all the ocean salt, which deters worms. I contemplated using it as mulch or as compost, and  read somewhere on the Internets that seaweed helps break down compost. Since our compost heap is brand new, I decided the seaweed could do its best work in there. Can’t wait till it breaks down so we can try it out!

Sidenote on seaweed, according to Ecofuss: “Seaweed and algae are very efficient carbon sinks which means that they absorb more carbon than their rate emission…” So they help combat global warming!