Putting seedlings onto grow line

[jerrard_willis]

Hi guys.
Put in our first 5000 mtrs of seedling up here in Tromsø Norway not long ago.
The only issues we seemed to have, was using the seed spools with the grow line through the centre. As our grow lines are quite long, we needed to cut the grow line and attach another seed spool, then connect the grow line again.
For grow lines longer than the seed line, how are you guys doing it?
Thanks
Jerrard

[mica_oherlihy]

@jerrard_willis
following..

[bretton_hills]

@jerrard_willis Hello from BC! I would love to visit Tromsø one day, I use to live in Umea.
This was our first year planting as well, and what we did was measure out 25m sections, then put a soft shackle on one end and a bowline on the other to attach in. We spliced in a line for a buoy above the shackle. This generally worked. We assumed 1.2m for the connection, and work area, and had 20m seeded lines. Only some of the seeded lines were 25-27m so they ran a bit long and we had to cut them. We used a three line grid system, with 10 sections for each line, 2.5 grids. its working so far.
One thing I saw in a video was the farm asked the nursery to make a lengthwise cut down the pvc pipe so it could be removed from the growline easily- that might work too. I think that's in one of the outplanting videos in the courses section.
Best of luck!

[clifford_goudey]

@jerrard_willis We use C-Links exclusively for growline connections.

Growlines are typically made 200-feet long, the standard seed spool length. We avoid shackles and knots at all cost with every connection a splice. These links are quick to open and close but will simply not come apart on their own and are available at most marine supply outlets.
Cliff

[bretton_hills]

@clifford_goudey out of curiosity, why jo knots or shackles? This is my first year too.

[clifford_goudey]

Bretton, you asked, "Why no knots or shackles?"
In my view, splices are preferred over knot because:

1. Not everyone can tie a proper knot.
2. Knots represent a 30 to 50% loss in strength compared to the rope itself.
3. Knots present a physical obstruction during seeding and harvest activities.
4. Knots can snag passing debris, adding to drag loads and crop loss.
5. Splices in 3-strand are quick and enable precision on line lengths.
6. Splices are more permanent than knots; useful in engineered systems.

In my view, shackles suck because:

1. They can wiggle apart unless carefully moused.
2. They are slow to open and close when needed during farm activities.
3. They are useless when the screw pin is dropped overboard.
4. When used near the surface they rust and will chafe the lne in contact with them.
5. Their use should be confined to the mooring line connection to the anchor or its chain.

Cliff

[mica_oherlihy]

@clifford_goudey somehow one of our C- links came apart during our recent bomb cyclone…

[bretton_hills]

@clifford_goudey out of curiosity, why jo knots or shackles? This is my first year too.

[clifford_goudey]

Bretton, you asked, "Why no knots or shackles?"
In my view, splices are preferred over knot because:

1. Not everyone can tie a proper knot.
2. Knots represent a 30 to 50% loss in strength compared to the rope itself.
3. Knots present a physical obstruction during seeding and harvest activities.
4. Knots can snag passing debris, adding to drag loads and crop loss.
5. Splices in 3-strand are quick and enable precision on line lengths.
6. Splices are more permanent than knots; useful in engineered systems.

In my view, shackles suck because:

1. They can wiggle apart unless carefully moused.
2. They are slow to open and close when needed during farm activities.
3. They are useless when the screw pin is dropped overboard.
4. When used near the surface they rust and will chafe the lne in contact with them.
5. Their use should be confined to the mooring line connection to the anchor or its chain.

Cliff

[mica_oherlihy]

@clifford_goudey somehow one of our C- links came apart during our recent bomb cyclone…

[iskander_bond]

Hi @jerrard_willis , this might not be the best way overall (when factoring in time taken), but it is the best way I can think of to ensure the seed is kept safe whilst removing the need to cut into or knot ones precious grow lines. When the end of a spool is reached, feed the remainder of the line through the next spool, attach the twine and continue.
For us, our spool to grow line ratio is 2:1. So it's not too much trouble to do this. If you've got more spools per grow line, it might be more time consuming.