Maintenance 10-27-13 to 11-2-13
The “Spat” continue to grow!!
On Saturday when I checked my oysters, many of the spat had grown to about a half-inch in diameter! There was very little new growth or “fouling” on the cages. There was, however, a fair amount of silt and sediment on the oysters themselves.Here’s what you should do for maintenance this week:
- Actively dunk your cages up and down in the water to remove silt and sediment from the spat so that they don’t smother and die.
- Give your cages a quick shake to keep your oysters from growing together.
- Leave the cages on your dock for about an hour to let any growth that has occurred to dry out and die.
- Set a timer so that you don’t forget to put your oysters back in the water.
- Make sure your oysters are evenly distributed on the bottom of the cage and put them back in the water.
Avoid using your house or power washer to clean the cages. The pressure from either can kill the spat.
We encourage you to log the results you are experiencing on our website, oystersforthebay.com. If you have ANY trouble with this process please contact Kelsey at 410-822-9143 or, if you prefer, you may send us an e-mail through the website.
That’s it for this week. Please call Kelsey at 410-822-9143 if you have any problems with the maintenance of your cages. Talk to you next week!
Sincerely,
The Oyster Reef Recovery Initiative