Updated 25 October 2026. Facts on this page come from minecraft.wiki, minecraft.net and the live Artemis PvP server; sources are listed at the bottom.
Kelp in Minecraft: Dried Kelp, Fuel and Kelp Farms
Kelp is a tall underwater plant in every ocean except warm and frozen ones. Smelt it into dried kelp, a fast snack (1 hunger, eaten quickly), and craft 9 dried kelp into a dried kelp block that smelts 20 items as fuel. Kelp grows without light, and placing it in flowing water turns that water into a source block, the classic trick for building bubble elevators.
What is kelp good for?
- Dried kelp: smelt kelp; eat it in about half the normal time.
- Dried kelp block: 9 dried kelp, a fuel that smelts 20 items, so a kelp farm can fuel its own smelter.
- Source blocks: kelp in downward-flowing water makes it a source block, handy for water elevators; see water elevators.
- Floating foundations: you can place blocks on top of kelp to build over deep water.
- Composting (30% chance per kelp) and smelting XP; see XP farms.
How does kelp grow?
It grows upward in water, with or without sky or light, and stops at a random height set when it was placed (it can be up to 26 blocks). Bone meal adds one block per use. Breaking the bottom drops the whole stalk, and items float up through water source blocks. Planted on almost any block underwater.
How do you build a kelp farm?
Plant kelp in a column of water, place observers that see it grow, and let pistons cut it above the bottom piece; water streams carry the items to hoppers. It is one of the simplest automatic farms and pairs with a furnace array. See Minecraft farms and observers.
Can you buy kelp?
Wandering traders sell 1 kelp for 3 emeralds, but any normal ocean has plenty. See oceans.
Is farming useful on ArtemisPvP?
Frequently asked questions
How much does a dried kelp block smelt?
20 items.
Does kelp need light to grow?
No, kelp grows without light or sky access.
Sources
Every fact on this page was checked against these pages; the wording is ours.