Virtual Tour

How Do We Culture Glidden Point Oysters?

Although it looks like a handful of sand, this is half a million oyster seed just received from the hatchery. The coin is a dime.

Each year we buy small seed oystersfrom shellfish hatcheries, grow them to "plantable size" in equipment at one of our lease sites, then scatter them over the seabed and other leases where they grow to market size and are eventually harvested for sale. Our sites are not naturally occurring wild oyster beds or self-sustaining populations which replenish themselves. If we didn't re-seed the site with oysters every year, there would not be any oysters there to harvest.

Oysters, like other bivalve shellfish, are filter feeders. They siphon the water in and over their gills, filter out phytoplankton for food, extract oxygen for respiration, and expel the waste water. Their metabolic needs increase with their size, as more food, oxygen and energy are required to support a larger animal. The metabolic rate of an oyster is also largely determined by water temperature.

In 4-6 weeks the seed will still be extremely fragile, but will look more like an oyster.

Oyster seed are placed in floating trays at our warmest lease site, using mesh tops and bottoms to allow for adequate water circulation. Various mesh sizes are used throughout the season to accommodate different seed sizes as the small oysters grow. Trays are tended at least once per week to clean the mesh, make necessary repairs, and keep oyster densities at levels which allow for optimal growth, shell shape and health of the animal.

These green spat bags can be used to hold seed until it grows sufficiently to be transferred to the black larger mesh ÏadpiÓ bags that are commonly used in Maine.

These rows of nursery bags contain several hundred thousand oyster seed. Each ÏadpiÓ bag will hold 200-2,000 oysters, depending on the size of the seed.

If too many oysters are kept in too little equipment, the oysters are "crowded" and competing with each other for limited resources. Only the oysters near the mesh of a crowded bag or tray will get what they need for optimal performance. Crowding produces oysters with slow and irregular growth, elongated and fragile shells, and thin watery meats. These weakened and stressed animals will have higher rates of mortality as they will be more prone to disease and less likely to survive a harsh winter or withstand predation. Many will retain their "ugly" shapes through years of future growth, so will be of less value if and when they survive to reach market size.

It is fall and these oysters are ready for bottom planting after spending 6-8 months in floating nursery equipment in the warm surface waters of the upper estuary.

Throughout the season as the seed continues to grow it will be transferred to equipment with larger mesh openings, and "thinned" so fewer animals will occupy each nursery bag.Once the seed is "bottom planted" (fancy aquaculture-talk meaning thrown out the boat) it will spend the next 18-30 months living on the sea floor within the boundaries of an aquaculture lease. During this time the oyster will continue to grow and the shell will harden. Market-size oysters are then harvested by divers or small drags towed behind boats.

The fish totes are holding a day's harvest of 3-4 year old oysters, waiting to be culled, sorted, washed and packed for delivery.

Pristine Water Quality is Essential

The Damariscotta River estuary is recognized as one of the cleanest in the Northeast, with fresh ocean water from the briny Atlantic flushing in twice daily. At time when coastal pollution is an ever increasing concern, we can boast that Glidden Point oysters are grown in pristine Maine waters where contamination by pollutants is minimal, an especially important consideration with shellfish which are often eaten raw. The waters of our growing area are tested regularly for bacterial content by state laboratories to ensure that they remain in compliance with stringent water quality standards of approved growing areas.

Our growing areas are several lease sites along the Damariscotta River estuary in the waters of Newcastle, Bristol, S.Bristol and Edgecomb. Our wharf, boats, retail and wholesale shellfish facility are at Dodge Lower Cove by water, which is on the River Road in the town of Edgecomb by land.