Many people have been growing oysters for personal consumption for years and now those gardeners, as well as new gardeners, are being encouraged to grow extra oysters for restoration. Mark Luckenbach, of the Virginia Institute of Marine Science, says oyster gardeners can make a difference. A similar increase was observed in the western branch of the Elizabeth River in Portsmouth, VA after reef restocking there. Oyster seed, also called spat, are nursery-raised on shell, then packaged with the shell into mesh bags. Spat are usually distributed to gardeners in September or October.
Gardeners raise their charges in floats that attach to docks.
These floating baskets are often made of plastic or metal mesh with openings large enough to allow water flow, but small enough to prevent oysters from falling through the mesh. Oyster gardeners raise baby oysters for about a year. During the fall, and sometimes spring, gardeners and students have a chance to help crew a CBF workboat and deposit their charges onto protected reefs. ORP volunteers help grow oysters at the state's Horn Point hatchery. These baby oysters are distributed to oyster gardeners, who grow them for a year.