Offshore Cultivation Methods Affects Blade Features of the Edible Seaweed Saccharina latissima in a Bay of Galicia, Northwest Spain

Variation in blade morphology of Saccharina latissima may be of importance for its commercial cultivation. Blade features were compared between offshore cultivation on horizontal ropes versus hanging ropes during its reproduction period (early autumn and early spring of the following year). Cultivation experiments were conducted in February 2002 in a sheltered coastal area of a bay of Galicia (Northwest Spain). Significant differences were found between methods in blade area, which in turn affected blade biomass. However, the differences were only significant during the reproduction period in early spring. The cultivation method also significantly affected the substantiality value, which is an index that expresses the blade quality for human consumption. The observed variations in morphological features of S. latissima blades likely were caused by the different hydrodynamics of the two cultivation methods.