NY Times: “A curious trend is underway in Southwest Florida. Young red mangroves trees, some with nicknames like Rosie, Penelope and Dingle, are being adopted and raised in backyard gardens, at restaurant host stands, beside bank teller windows and in school classrooms throughout Sanibel Island and the Fort Myers area.
Their purpose is an existential one for the state: to help buffer the fragile coastline from rising seas and increasingly ferocious storms.
Mangroves, evolutionary marvels that can grow in coastal saltwater, are critical to life in Florida. They provide essential habitat for fish and wading birds, improve water quality and pull carbon from the atmosphere.
They also stabilize shorelines from erosion and can reduce property damage during storms, which is of growing importance as climate change intensifies hurricanes.
Last month, volunteers on Sanibel Island planted 500 red mangrove seedlings that had been nurtured by local residents over months, to help the community recover from recent storms.”