Friday farming tip #14
Alert readers may ask “What happened to farming tip #13?”. If hotels can not have a 13th floor, I don’t need a 13th farming tip. But you may say “That’s not fair!”. Tough, you can tell it to the judge. I don’t think so because you’re never taking me alive you pig. For your own good, put your hands on your head and step away from the car Mr…..
Sorry. Different conversation. On with the farming wisdom. Have you ever dreamed of running over 3,000 head of jewel producing mollusks? I’m talking about farming pearls. Or rather pearl oysters. Our tip today comes from the Center for Tropical and Subtropical Aquaculture’s document The Basic Methods of Pearl Farming: A Layman’s Manual. And it points out some conditions to look for when deciding where to park your pearl farm.
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Pearl oysters prefer clean, clear water far away from sources of contamination such as chemicals, oil, sewage or other pollution. Areas near large villages or towns will usually have some pollution, so farms should be located as far away as possible, or up-current from the source of pollution. Do not locate your farm near the mouth of a river or other sources of freshwater since sudden changes in salinity can be harmful. Areas with rough water where sand and silt are stirred up should also be avoided since pearl oysters have trouble feeding in cloudy water. A general rule is that a site with thriving corals will be a good site for pearl oysters.
In essence, pearl oysters are a lot like chickens. You have a place where you pen them up, you keep them healthy, & then you go rip what they’re producing from them. And if they don’t produce, you can eat them. (Mmmm, roast chicken with oyster stuffing) The differences being that chickens produce more often than once every 2-3 years, you can’t make omelets from pearls, and pearl oyster farms smell a lot better than chicken farms with much better scenery. So there you go. Your petite pearl producers prefer pure pollution-free places to provide plentiful pearl profits. Precisely! Happy farming!