Seaweed

Walla Walla onions mulched with seaweed

Seaweed bed waiting for tomatoes

   

We are so lucky to live in a place with access to seaweed. Seaweed is full of micronutrients that benefit the soil and vegetables. We have been mulching some of our beds with cardboard, seaweed and grass clippings in order to keep the weeds down and to boost the health of our vegetables. In addition to reducing the weed pressure, mulching helps lock in soil moisture, prevents erosion, and maintains soil structure which encourages healthy bug habitats. Usually farmers mulch with expensive and labor intensive straw or use black plastic which shreds at the end of the season when you try to remove it, leaving bits of plastic in the soil.  Seaweed, although labor intensive, is free and has the double bonus of composting into the soil, leaving lush, healthy topsoil.