Has anyone been able to keep mangroves alive?

[Vincerama2]

I've tried like 3 times to keep a bunch of mangrove plants alive in my refugium. They live for a while and seem to thrive, then dry up on me.

Has anyone actually got a mangrove plant that is thriving?

Also, can you just plant them in soil in a pot on your patio?

V

 

[lattehiatus]

I've had five red mangrove propagules (originally without leaves and very few roots) leaf and grow. When I first received them I ensnared what roots they had into some Enkamat plastic mesh, then precariously balanced them on a piece of rock so that the shoots are emersed above the water surface. All five have since leafed and developed scuba roots down the rock they are on, without any special substrates.

This was in a clownfish growout tank with a barely functional skimmer, so the nutrient load was quite high (no inverts, so NO3 and PO4 were not tested). They received light from a PAR38 lamp and a little indirect sunlight from a nearby window. Maintenance was the occasional spraying of emersed leaves "trunks" with RO/DI water to remove salt creep.

I believe JAR had very good results with growing mangroves, so hopefully he will chime in with his expertise!