Coastal harvest

Ecklonia radiata, better known as Paddleweed, drying before being baled for commercial use. After storms Paddleweed is found along the southern coast beach piled up in large quantities from where it is collected to be processed. It is used in fertilizer products, personal care products, shampoos, conditioners, day creams, night creams, toners, scrubs, and washes.
Paddleweed, is one of the deepest growing of the large, brown seaweeds.  It is typically1 metre in height its color ranges from dark brown to green In deeper waters these plants grow to 2 metres tall.  It is a very successful species, growing in dense sub tidal forests in both shallow and deep waters.

Forests of Paddleweed form a home for numerous fish species. They are also home to a myriad of tiny species just as terrestrial forests are home to an abundance of insects.  It is the preferred food of the sea urchin, kina which sometimes mass together and munch through an entire forest Following such large-scale habitat destruction, other seaweeds may dominate for a while, but in many areas Paddleweed grows rapidly and is able to recover.

As with most plant species, Paddleweed has a problem with invasive weeds. The one that threatens in the southern hemisphere is a kelp native to Japan, China and Korea known as Wakame (Undaria pinnatifida) It finds its way to new waters by hitching a ride on ocean currents or ships.  Wakame can displace native species and cause significant impacts to areas it colonizes.