Optimizing the initial cultivation stages of kelp Ecklonia radiata for restoration

Abstract

Restoration of kelp forests typically relies on transplanting sporophylls to new locations and has limited application in regions with low remnant kelp cover. Cultivated kelp requires fewer sporophylls and is a potential alternative and sustainable source of transplants for large-scale restoration projects. Naturally sourced fertile sporophylls, however, are still required as “seed” stock in cultivation practices, thus optimizing cultivation methods is important to minimize this dependency on wild stocks. To assist in optimizing the early-stage cultivation methods for restoring beds of the laminarian kelp Ecklonia radiata, we first tested the effects of sporophyll transport, storage, and deh..