An Illustrated Review on Cultivation and Life History of Agronomically Important Seaplants

Seaplants (a better alternative to the misnomer “Seaweeds”), by all means, are “future plants”; they have been projected as the future viand for ever-increasing human populations, viable and sustainable source for biofuel without disturbing global food scenario, as potential candidates for carbon capture and sequestration that is considered as a practical remedy for global warming, and they have a number of pharmaceutical, industrial and biotechnological applications. However, information on its cultivation methods or life history remain obscure to a majority of marine botanists. While life histories of seaweeds have traditionally been an exotic topic for specialists-language of which is ciphered with scientific jargons incomprehensible to general scientific audience, its agronomy had been a trade secret for coastal communities in East Asian countries, especially Japan, the Philippines and Indonesia. In this up-to-date illustrated review, current scientific understanding on the life-histories of agronomically pertinent seaweeds are presented in a fashion akin to popular science journalism with an overview of major coastal and offshore seaweed mariculture techniques, presented with the aid of clear-tounderstand illustrations. Also discussed in this report are recent advances in the algal natural products; including uses in hydrocolloid and pharmaceutical industries, Integrated Multi Trophic Aquaculture, energy production, environmental impacts of the seafarming and its counter measures, before concluding with an overview of future research avenues.