Blog / Industry News

Company Profile: Seasol

Creating a garden and growing your own food in an organic and natural way is one of the biggest steps you can take to reduce your carbon footprint, improve your health and save money. Seasol sells organic and environmentally friendly products that help plants resist heat, drought, frost, pests and fungus.

We interviewed Seasol Australia to find out what makes their organic garden products unique.

How and when did Seasol get started?

Seasol started as a small Tasmanian based seaweed company. In 1984 it was purchased by Eric Haynes, originally a coal miner from England, who had migrated to Australia with his wife Molly in the 1950's.

At the time the company was manufacturing and selling a product called Seasol, a plant health tonic and soil conditioner made from Bull Kelp washed ashore on King Island. Although not widely recognized, the product was generating significant interest locally among farmers and commercial growers who saw improved growth and quality in their crops when Seasol was applied.

Eric quickly recognized the potential of such a product and in the years that followed Seasol was developed for commercial horticulture. It was during this time that it proved its value as a superior plant tonic. Results in the field continued to show that Seasol improved the quality and performance of yields, reduced plant stress and resulted in tougher, healthier plants. Although R&D funds were limited, trials and anecdotal evidence from all over Australia and indeed many parts of the world, confirmed that this magical seaweed had properties that science was yet to properly identify.

In the mid 1990's Seasol was re-packaged specifically for the home garden market, and with the support of horticultural experts such as Don Burke its sales and popularity among home gardeners grew rapidly. Because of Seasol's capacity to help protect plants against hot, dry conditions and its astonishing ability to stimulate root growth, it quickly became the top selling liquid garden treatment in Australia.

Such positive results paved the way for the launch of a new Seasol home garden range. In 2000 PowerFeed, a fish based fertilizer and soil conditioner, was released into the home garden market with great success. Since then several products have been added to the company's range including Seasol Planting Gel, Seasol Super Soil Wetter, Seasol for Lush Green Lawns and most recently PowerFeed for Tomatoes and Vegetables & PowerFeed for Flowers, Fruit & Citrus.

Recently we have added a granular product to our range with PowerFeed for Troforte with microbe technology. It is an organically enriched plant food that delivers a balance of slow and quick release nutrients to all plants including native, promoting vigorous growth, whilst stimulating flowering and fruit. PLUS, it contains granules coated organically with beneficial microbes, that improves the soil structure and assists plants to access nutrients within the soil.

Where is Seasol based?

Seasol is based at the foot of the Dandenong Ranges in Bayswater (1027 Mountain Highway), 29km east of Melbourne CBD. It is here that you will find the head office, bottling plant and warehouse. Seasol also has a manufacturing facility located in Tasmania in Rochlea a northern suburb of Launceston, about ten minutes drive from Launceston CBD. It is here that the kelp is processed and sent to Baywater to be bottled.

What is unique about the Seasol range of products?

At Seasol we are in the business of growing and nurturing! And not just plants, but strong communities, a happy healthy workplace and a sustainable environment. We think everyone should have the opportunity to enjoy a garden or grow their own food and to do it naturally. We want every kid to get their hands dirty and discover that tomatoes don't grow in the supermarket. And we want all of you to feel confident that you can create a beautiful garden in the wet, the dry and everything in between. We make products to help you do just that.

Seasol has been manufacturing and marketing organic and environmentally friendly products for over 40 years. Our growing range of plant tonics, fertilisers and water saving products are designed to help keep both gardens and the planet green and beautiful. Seasol is Certified Organic in Australia by Australian Organic Ltd (formerly Biological Farmers of Australia), in New Zealand by BioGrow, in Europe through Organic Farmers and Growers and in the USA by Omri.

Beyond our environmentally friendly product range, our company supports and works with several organizations who, like us, are committed to making this a better world to live in.

What are the environmental benefits of using Seasol products on your garden?

Seasol, the complete garden health treatment, contains plant nutrients, trace elements, algenic acid and other bio-active compounds to assist plant development in a variety of natural ways.

Seasol:

• Promotes healthy growth in all plants including natives.
• Stimulates strong root growth and beneficial soil micro-organisms. Therefore, Seasol is ideal for planting and transplanting as well as sick and stressed plants.
  
• Enhances flowering and fruiting. Seasol enables the production of more flowers and fruit and promotes bigger and better blooms.
  
• Strengthens and creates stronger cell walls. Therefore, Seasol increases tolerance to environmental stress such as drought, heat and frost. It also helps to reduce damage from insect and fungal attack.
  

How do you ensure that the kelp in your products is sustainably sourced, and why is this important to you?

Seasol is derived from a blend of the finest brown kelps from around the world - King Island Bull Kelp (Durvillaea potatorum), Chile Bull Kelp (Durvillaea Antarctica) and Knotted Kelp (Ascophyllum nodosum) from the North Atlantic Ocean.

The King Island Bull Kelp is sustainably sourced from storm-cast material collected from remote Southern Ocean shores of Tasmania and King Island.

Knotted Kelp (Ascophyllum nodosum) grows in shallow inter-tidal waters. When it is harvested, care is taken not to remove the whole plant – the base is left intact so that the kelp re-grows. In effect, the kelp is harvested by ‘pruning’.

As already stated, Seasol is in the business of growing and nurturing, but not just plants, but a sustainable environment. We have been marketing and manufacturing environmentally friendly products for over 40 years. We believe that if we don’t look after our planet and our kelp now, it will not be there for future generations to enjoy the benefits of Seasol in their garden.

Which are the best-selling products and what do you attribute this to?

Seasol’s best-selling product is the 2 litre Seasol twin hose-on pack avaialble from all Bunnings stores. We can attribute this to its price point, value for money - it will treat up to 100 sq metres of garden and lawn in 10 minutes. It’s easy to use as you simply attach it to your hose and off you go.

Are there any other products in your range?

Seasol has a full range of garden care products designed to keep both gardens and the planet green and beautiful.

• Seasol Lush Green Lawns, a superior liquid health treatment and fertilizer with the benefits of Seasol, a specially formulated nutrient mix, trace elements, concentrated liquid compost, as well as a wetting agent.
• Seasol Foliar Spray, an easy and convenient 750mL trigger pack designed for patios, courtyards, balconies and all potted plants. The unique foliage formulas combine Seasol with a specially formulated nutrient mix and trace elements, plus organic chelators for fast foliage uptake.
  
• PowerFeed a liquid fertiliser and dynamic soil conditioner, that is safe to use on all plants including natives. Included in this range is specific formulas PowerFeed for Tomatoes & Vegetables and PowerFeed for Flowers, Fruit & Citrus.
  
• PowerFeed with Troforte, granular organically enriched plant food, safe on all plants including natives.
  
• Water saving products, Seasol Super Soil Wetter and Conditioner, a liquid soil wetter, soil conditioner and plant health treatment in one. Seasol Planting Gel a combination of semi-hydrated water storing crystals, boosted with Seasol and essential nutrients at the root zone, where the plants need it that most.
  

In the commercial sector, Seasol has high quality kelp, fish, humic and trace element products for the horticultural and agricultural market. Out products are used by farmers, orchardists and commercial growers.

• Seasol plus Calcium is a patented calicum fortfied Seasol liquid concentrate. This product has all the benefits of Seasol with Calicum for improving cell-wall integrity in developing fruit and leaves.
• Seasol plus Iron, it has all the benefits of liquid Seasol with a maintenance dose of iron to help in preventing or overcoming chlorosis. It improves growth and maintains a plants iron requirement to maximise its productive potential
  
• Seasol plus, a unique blend of Seasol with added fish and humate. This “all in one” product benefits both the plant and the soil. It is used when plant stimulation, soil conditioning and a little extra nitrogen is required. This product achieves its best results when used as part of a nutritional program.
  
• PastureMasta is a blend of Seasol with fish, liquid, humate and added Nitrogen, developed specifically for optimum effectiveness on pasture.
  
• PowerFeed Commercial is a fertilfed fish fertilizer that is blended with liquid humus to produce a highly efficient complementary liquid feed with dual action benefits for plant growth and soil condition.
  
• Liquid Organic Huamte, a certified organic liquid, is a specialised soil treatment for improving soil structure and plant nutrient availability
  
• Humate plus a highly refined humate based conditioner with added fish, seaweed and nitrogen. It improves soil structure and moisture retention, boosts root growth, improves soil biology and stimulates plant growth.
  
• Earthcare Soil Wetter is a blend of an environmentally safe soil wetter with liquid humates for longer lasting improvement.
  
• Earthcare Planting Gel a scientifically formulated blend of Seasol and PowerFeed semi-hydrated water crystals, directly to the root zone of plants and turf to increase survival rates after transplanting.
  
• Earthcare Water Crystal when incorporated into a soil or potting media, absorb and retain large quantities of water and water-soluble nutrients.
  

Where are Seasol products available?

Seasol retail products are available from Bunnings, Mitre 10, Home Timber and Hardware, Coles, Woolworthes, IGA, Big W and independent hardware and garden centres. Go to our website to find your nearest stockist.
Seasol Commercial is available from CRT, Landmark, Elders, Sure Gro, Plantmark, Roberts, Farmer Johns, Norco Rural, Arbor green, Lindsay Rural, Fernland Agencies, Optima Agriculture stores around Australia. For detailed information by state, go to our webite under commercial and stockist.

Do you have any new products in the pipeline that we can look forward to?

Seasol are expanding into the granular fertiliser with PowerFeed LawnFeed with Torforte microbe technology to be introduced early next year. This product is an organically enriched granular lawn food and soil conditioner for all lawns including Buffalo. Boosted with seaweed it stimulates the root system and reduces stress from heat, drought, pests and foot traffic. It also has the organically coated beneficial microbes. These microbes work to improve soil structure and help lawns to access nutrients in the soil.

Another product to be introduced next year is PowerFeed Controlled Release Plant Food, all purpose, Tomatoes & Vegetables, and Flowers, Fruit and Citrus available in 500gram and 1kg tubs.