Cultivation of Laminaria japonica (Laminariales, Phaeophyta) in Udo Coast, Jeju, Korea

In order to produce Laminaria japonica in Jeju as feed for abalone, a transplant experiment was performed with the Baekryungdo and the Wando cultivar stocks at the Udo aquafarm from January to July 2003. Eight water conditions at the aquafarm and eleven traits of the two cultivar stocks were measured once a month. The water temperature ranged from 12.9$^{\circ}C$ to 23.5$^{\circ}C$. The salinity was 31.3-36.8‰ the DO was 5.40-9.86 mg ${\cdot}$ $l^{-1}$ the pH was 7.82-9.61. Concentrations of $NO_2-N,\;NO_3-N,\;NH_4-N\;and\;PO_4-P$ were 0.02-0.15 $\mu$M, 2.27-3.49 $\mu$M, 0.16-0.56 $\mu$M and 0.07-0.99 $\mu$M, respectively. The whole frond length of the Baekryungdo and the Wando specimens were 173.84 and 153.67 cm. The blade width, stipe length, blade length, fascia length, blade thickness, total weight and substantiality of the Baekryungdo and the Wando specimens were 14.61 and 13.05 cm, 3.94 and 3.02 cm, 169.88 and 150.65 cm, 155.81 and 137.10 cm, 1.01 and 0.96 cm, 258.04 and 200.96 cm, and 101.56 and 94.62, respectively at the conclusion of the experiment in July. The measurements of the Baekryungdo specimens were slightly higher than those of Wando specimens. The fascia width, stipe thickness and fascia thickness of the Wando specimens were slightly higher than those of the Baekryungdo specimens. The relative growth rates of these traits of two cultivar stocks during the growth test were very similar. Generally, the performance of the Baekryungdo cultivar stock seems to be better than that of the Wando samples. Further study of the physiological ecology for cultivation and breeding is needed in the future.