Salt Marshes – The Amazing New Frontier of Crop Gardening!

“What!? You can’t grow crops on salt marshes!” Yes, you can! Let me prove you wrong… So, in case you have a marshy patch, with seawater to boot, you can still grow some greens and edibles, and you will also help with the preservation and regeneration of the soggy land… It’s happening, yes, and there are thousands of acres being farmed, especially in Spain. So, if they can do it, why shouldn’t you?

You would think that you cannot garden without fresh water, but think about it, don’t plants grow on salt marshes as well?

Crop gardening on salt marshes is a new development, a new field of agriculture, a totally different world, but a really fascinating one. Tell me if I am wrong; to start with…

The Amazing Advantages of Salt Marsh Gardening!

I’m not pulling your leg. Gardening on salt marshes is so cheap and it has some really major advantages, like…

• You don’t need to irrigate! Fresh water is far less than salty water in the world, so, why waste it?
• You don’t need to fertilize, ever! Seawater is super packed with nutrients! Arguably the best natural liquid fertilizer ever…
• You don’t need pesticides or fungicides! Seawater is a natural pesticide and disinfectant.
• You never need to till the soil!
• You get much more per hectare! You get 7 to 5 tons of wheat per year on a hectare of soil, while on a marsh, you can get up to 30. Ok, you may not have that much land, but scale it down and you get the idea…
• Plants that grow on salt marshes are very tough, so they are virtually disease free, and ironically, many are also drought tolerant!
• Salt marshes are very cheap, in case you don’t have one, you live by the seaside, and you want to try out something new.

Have I convinced you? But what’s the secret?

The Secret of Sea Marsh Gardening

Most plants do not tolerate salty conditions, but there are about 3,000 species that do, and many are edible. These are called halophytes, and they either tolerate salt within their system, or their roots have a way of stopping it from entering altogether.

What does it mean? It means that, of course, you will not grow tomatoes and peas in your salt marsh garden; your crops will be somewhat “exotic”, but often delicacies, and almost always very expensive vegetables – in case you want to sell them to a local restaurant for some cash.

On the other hand, these plants are packed with nutrients, in some cases proper superfoods!

Next…

Salt Marshes Are Delicate Environments – Will Growing Crops on Them Affect their Ecology?

I know you are asking yourself this question, the ethical one… Your land, may, in fact, even be in a protected conservation area. Do check with the local authority.

Of course, if you farm it intensively, it will change it. But if you plant some of the crops we will see soon among the others (some varieties may already be growing on your boggy land), you won’t, because these are all species native to salt marshes.

In fact, the opposite can be true; salty marshes are often very degraded land, in need of care.

This new development is actually a branch of regenerative agriculture, and it restores salty marshes to their natural beauty and ecosystem, while getting crops out of them at the same time.

If this article opens your eyes on a new world in gardening, and you want to know more, salt marsh crop gardening is being studied byDr. Andrew Millison at Oregon State University.

Do You Need to Do Anything to the Marsh to Garden It?

Large salt marsh farms control the inflow and outflow of water, and they also adapt their tractors, harvesters etc. to run on water, but you don’t need to at all.

You can build raised beds, this way, you will be able to grow a much larger range of vegetables, because there are some varieties that are salt tolerant, but they cannot grow in very wet conditions; we will see some of these at the end.

But I would like to focus on those crop varieties you can grow directly in the marshy soil. It’s just a matter of choosing the right green edible and planting it. So, let me help you with this choice…

Vegetables to Grow on Salt Marshes

As we said, there are 3,000 species that live well with wet and salty “feet”, not all are edible. Some still have commercial value, like Sarconia perennis, which is great as animal fodder, and you can make oil out of its seeds.

But we’ll focus on those you can actually eat…

I will also give you the spacing in rows, but if you want to keep your salt marsh looking natural, plant them randomly, only using these measurements as spacing from the nearest plant.

Let’s start!

1: Samphire (Salicornia europaea)

Yes, yes, yes! That delicacy you find in specialized stores at extortionate prices, or top-notch restaurants grows on salt marshes! Why not plant your own! With its unique, super tasty flavor, this perennial is a real treasure trove. You can simply cut it, and let it grow back. It requires no care at all, and you will enjoy it forever!

Samphire is an amazing source of minerals, which it picks up from the seawater, like calcium, sodium and potassium, and it’s a super food when it comes to your health. Full of antioxidants, it is great for your heart, your bones, it is digestive, and it is also good for your sleep. A dream veggie altogether!

• Hardiness: USDA zones 6 to 9.
• Planting season: early spring, after the first frost.
• Spacing: 6 to 8 inches apart (15 to 20 cm); rows 12 to 18 inches apart (30 to 45 cm).

2: Sea Beans (Salicornia spp.)

Sea beans are not like any other bean. Actually, you eat the stems of this annual succulent, which have a fresh, crisp and salty flavor, with some earthy notes and a nutty aftertaste. When cooked, it looks like seaweed, but you can also have it raw, in salads or as a snack, and it’s quite crunchy and juicy indeed!

Like many other salty marsh plants, it is a real treasure for your health: antioxidant, anti-obesity, anti-diabetes, anti-inflammatory, cardioprotective, and neuroprotective (it defends your brain). So, not your average bean (and they don’t give you flatulence!)

• Hardiness: USDA zones 6 to 10.
• Planting season: early spring, when the soil has warmed up.
• Spacing: 6 to 12 inches apart (15 to 30 cm); rows 12 to 18 inches apart (30 to 45 cm).

3: Wild Celery (Apiumgraveolens)

Wild celery is actually the ancestor of the celery we buy at the market (or anywhere else). You would never guess that it is a halophyte and it grows on sea marshes. The flavor is stronger than the “normal” one, herby, a bit peppery, slightly bitter and with the freshness of parsley. So, you can use it exactly like its cultivated heir, but in smaller doses – there’s another saving for you!

As you’d expect, it is also better for your health, richer in nutrients, and a great anti-inflammatory and antioxidant. In fact, it is used to cure acute liver toxicity! Why not grow this perennial on your marshy land, cut it, and watch it regrow, ready for the next harvest?

• Hardiness: USDA zones 4 to 10.
• Planting season: start seeds indoors 8–10 weeks before the last frost and transplant outdoors when temperatures are safely above 32°F (0°C)
• Spacing: 6 to 8 inches apart (15 to 20 cm); rows 18 to 24 inches apart (45 to 60 cm).

4: Saltwort (Batis maritima)

Saltwort is a long-lived perennial, so, once you plant it, you have crops for many years. The whole plant is edible including the roots, raw or cooked. It is yet another sturdy succulent, crisp and briny, salty and similar to spinach, with a very slight earthy hint, mellowed by a cucumber touch. Quite a delicacy that would amaze your dinner guests. It also grows quite tall, up to 5 feet (1.5 meters), so you get big crops out of it!

It is rich in carbohydrates (46.5%), so it can replace pasta, and it does have some vegetable fat (25%), but don’t worry, they are almost all Omega-3 fatty acids, great for your joints, your brain function, your heart… Why buy them in pills when you can grow your own. It also cures eczema if you rub it on it.

• Hardiness: USDA zones 8 to 11.
• Planting season: late spring or early summer when temperatures consistently reach 70° to 75°F (21° to 24°C).
• Spacing: 12 to 18 inches apart (30 to 45 cm) for rows too.

5: Sea Beet (Beta vulgaris subsp. maritima)

You didn’t expect you could grow beets on your salty marshland, I guess. Well, you can! And it’s a perennial, so you can enjoy lots of crops. Its shiny leaves have a mild earthy flavor and they resemble chard or spinach in sweetness. On top of that, they add the extra luxurious touch: you can actually taste its minerals. Raw or cooked, it is the “beet with the X factor” to transform your cooking!

Sea beet was used in traditional medicine to treat many diseases, like some types of cancers such as leukemia, esophagus, glands, prostate, and breast tumors, andscientific studies seem to back up these amazing medicinal properties!So, it’s like having a pharmacy in a leaf…

• Hardiness: USDA zones 5 to 10.
• Planting season: early spring, after the last day of frost.
• Spacing: 8 to 10 inches apart (20 to 25 cm); rows 12 to 18 inches apart (30 to 45 cm).

6: Shrubby Sea Blite (Suaeda spp.)

Here’s another succulent halophyte that grows on salty and marshy land, up to 2 feet in height (60 cm) and 7 in diameter (2.0 meters), and being perennial, you will get large crops year after year. Harvest the young shoots and enjoy their crunchy but juicy texture, and a flavor that’s similar to samphire, salty, and a mix of “sea and green”. Usually eaten raw in salads, this vegetable will add a very special touch to your meals.

Rich in protein, fiber, vitamin B6, vitamin E and chromium, a source of manganese, shrubby sea blite also contains lutein, phenols, flavonoids and tannins. On top of its high nutrient content, it is antiviral and it helps prevent hepatitis, so you can enjoy it with a glass of wine…

• Hardiness: USDA zones 6 to 11.
• Planting season: early spring, after the last frost.
• Spacing: 12 to 24 inches apart (30 to 60 cm); rows 24 to 36 inches apart (60 to 90 cm).

Crops You Can Grow on Salt Marshes Using Raised Beds

If you build raised beds, you can also grow crop varieties that tolerate salt, but they cannot grow their roots in wet soil. Or if your property stretches to dry land away from the seafront, you can grow them there.

However, check with your local authority that your land is not in a conservation area, otherwise, you may not be allowed to build raised beds!

Here are some crops you can grow in raised beds:

• Asparagus (Asparagus officinalis)
• Okra (Abelmoschus esculentus)
• Beets (Beta vulgaris)
• Quinoa (Chenopodium quinoa)
• Barley (Hordeum vulgare)
• Arugula (Eruca sativa)
• Atriplex (Saltbush)
• New Zealand spinach (Tetragonia tetragonioides)
• Malabar spinach (Basella alba or Basella rubra)
• Ice plant (Mesembryanthemum crystallinum)
• Sea fig (Carpobrotus edulis)
• Sea fennel (Crithium maritimum)

Quite a big range, isn’t it?

Salty Marsh Crop Gardening – A Totally New World!

We have seen 6 varieties you can grow on your salty marsh, because it is a totally new field. I am sure that more and more will join the list as this revolutionary gardening method develops and as it becomes more popular; but I am sure you won’t look at your seaside wetland the same way again! Oh, by the way, salty march crop gardening has a name: it is called sealine agro-ecology.