In this opportunity, I will share a new segment of CREATIVE ECOLOGY, it is necessary to remember that in the first segment, I shared with the friends of @ecoTrain everything related to the technique Compost tea, as alternatives of urban bioinputs production in liquid presentation, in this opportunity, I will socialize what concerns the method of elaboration of the organic fertilizer, commonly identified as Watery extract of algae.

It is known as aqueous extract of seaweed, the liquid organic bioproduct based on seaweed, the technique for the development of this bioinput, is to extract the largest amount of secondary metabolites of fresh biomass of seaweed, through procedures such as maceration and the use of appropriate solvents, which act, in the extraction of these phytoelements useful for the growth of cultivated plant species.

The most common method used to extract bioactive compounds present at a cellular level in seaweed is the one developed by [2], which consists of drying the seaweed biomass at room temperature for 10 days, After this time, the dry biomass is crushed in a mill and then dissolved in water, the extract is centrifuged for 30 minutes (the use of blenders is recommended), and then the extract is left to rest for 1 hour, after which the supernatant or distillate is used as a concentrated extract.

For a long time, seaweeds have been harvested and used in agriculture, either as solid or liquid organic products, destined as soil amendments in the recovery of soils, as compost rich in minerals and substances that promote germination, vegetative and reproductive growth in plant species, Its use is also known as foliar fertilizer according to the bioactive components (cytokinins, auxins, abscisic acid and amino acids) available in the aqueous extracts obtained [1], hence the importance of these bioinputs as growth regulators in cultivated species, mainly those destined for human consumption.

On the other hand, aqueous extracts of algae, can also be used as biofungicides and bioinsecticides, this because, their secondary metabolites are phytotoxic for certain species of insects and fungi harmful to crops, consequently and knowing the practical scheme to elaborate these bio-inputs, we recommend their use in homes, being able to apply them to the vegetable species in our gardens, orchards and any area destined to the sowing of plants.

[1] Rathore S., Chaudhary D., Boricha G., Ghosh A., Bhatt B., and Zodape S. Effect of seaweed extract on the growth, yield and nutrient uptake of soybean (Glycine max) under rainfed conditions. S. Afr. J. Bot. 2009; 75: 351-355. Article: Online access

[2] Rebeller M., Yout P., and Lonchamp D. Process for selectively extracting dyestuffs contained in Cyanophyceae algae, the so-extracted dyestuffs and their use, particularly in foodstuffs. United States Patent, Patente: US4320050, FR2453199, JP55144868. 1982. Article: Online access