The Land of the Hills and the Glens 



township to anyone who wishes to make kelp. For this 

 privilege the kelp-maker does not pay anything. The com- 

 pany who purchases the kelp pays a small royalty per ton 

 to the proprietor. 



The second part of the kelp industry is the collecting 

 and burning of the fronds of the tangle. Every spring a 

 new frond is produced by the parent tangle plant. It has 

 its growing point at the base of the existing "leaf," and, as 

 it grows, pushes the old frond forward until it separates 

 from the plant. This takes place in April or during the 

 first fortnight in May, and if a period of breezy weather 

 is experienced during this time, great numbers of the fronds 

 are cast up by the tide. The tangle frond is known to the 

 islanders as the "Barr dearg " — the red top — and is gathered 

 as it makes its appearance on the shores. It is carried 

 beyond high-tide mark and is spread over the grass to dry, 

 being "turned" periodically in the same manner as new- 

 mown hay. If the weather remains fine and dry — and this 

 is an all-important factor — the fronds should be sufficiently 

 dry for burning on the third day after gathering. They 

 are then collected in "coles " and burnt on the grass in 

 the same manner as the tangle stems. 



Formerly "kilns" sunk in the ground were used for 

 the burning of the "barr dearg," but on Tiree, at all events, 

 these are no longer worked, as it is considered that they 

 produce a temperature so high as to destroy a portion of 

 the iodine. Since iodine is the most valuable product in 

 the ash, it is important that this should be preserved as much 

 as possible. As a result of careful analysis it has been 

 determined that kelp burned in kilns and so formed into 

 a hard slag, gives from ten to fifteen pounds of iodine per 

 ton. Against this the weed burnt in the open fields yields 

 from twenty to twenty-five pounds per ton, and even up 

 to twenty-eight pounds — a striking difference. 



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