plant spacing = 2.6-foot grid in low current areas, 



2.2-foot by 1.8-foot (average spacing of 2.0-feet) 



grid in high current areas. 



Therefore, planting in low current areas will require about 6,440 

 planting units per acre (15,910 planting units per hectare) while plantings 

 in high current areas will require about 10,890 units per acre (26,910 units 

 per hectare), to obtain completed cover in one growing season. 



2. Number of Shoots Required for a Planting . 



Number of number of shoots number of ,_ N 



x — — ; ; = , (2) 



planting units planting unit shoots harvested, 



:number of shoots per planting unit = 15 mature, vegetative shoots. 



Therefore, shoots required for 1 acre of planting in a low current 

 area are about 96,600 and about 163,350 for a high current area. 



VI. LABOR REQUIREMENTS 



1. Harvesting . 



a. The harvest rate is about 18,000 shoots per man-hour. 



b. Approximately 5 man-hours are required to harvest the 96,600 

 shoots necessary for a 1-acre planting in a low current area. 



c. Approximately 9 man-hours are needed to harvest the 163,350 shoots 

 required for a 1-acre planting in a high current area. 



2. Preparation of Planting Units . 



a. The fabrication rate of the planting units is approximately 100 per 

 man-hour. 



b. Approximately 64 man-hours are required to fabricate the 6,440 plant- 

 ing units necessary for 1 acre of low current planting. 



c. Approximately 109 man-hours are required for the fabrication of the 

 10,890 planting units for 1 acre of high current planting. 



3 . Planting . 



a. The planting rate is about 150 planting units per man-hour for most 

 habitats. Planting can be conducted by wading in water depths up to about 

 2 feet (0.6 meter). Planting in deeper areas may require scuba gear. 



