Revitalize Big Munson Island

UPDATE: We've reached our goal again, in short order! Due to continued interest from Scouts and supporters, we're setting a stretch goal of $10,000. The official goal won't be updated from $5,000. This stretch goal would allow us to make a visible impact to the majority of the island and campsites! A huge thanks to all of you who've already donated!

Mates and Munson lovers,

Anna Rose and I (Taylor) are fundraising to replant Mama Munson. For potential donors who were not Sea Base staff, Big Munson Island is a 110-acre island owned by the Boy Scouts in the Florida Keys. It is home to many species of imperiled flora and fauna and provides a space for thousands of Scouts each year to interact with this unique ecosystem.

The bad news:

Big Munson was one of the worst hit spots by category four Hurricane Irma in September 2017. The island was completely inundated with 6-8 feet of fast-moving storm surge. Most large shade trees on the beach fronts were uprooted and blown into the mangroves. The great buttonwood is dead, as well as the champion lignum vitae. Most mangroves on the frontside (south side) were killed as well.

The good news:

The island is regrowing, but slowly. Many small trees are sprouting up, but the island is still quite bare compared to most of your memories. Anna Rose and I have started a restoration project to help jump-start the island's rejuvenation. This summer, we began purchasing and planting native plants on Munson. Sea Base has provided some fencing materials to deer-proof the new plants and will provide transportation for the larger trees for our next planting trip.

Since we reached our original goal in just a few days, I've bumped it up to $5,000 so that others will have the opportunity to support the project. With a goal of $5,000, we hope to rejuvenate at least five campsite areas. Anna Rose and I have pledged $1,000 to this project, bringing us to at least six total replanted campsites. If we go over the goal, we'll keep planting! I know not all mates and alumni monitor the BEC staff Facebook page, so I'm relying on all of you to spread the word. Please share with any staff you stay in touch with. Let's give back to Mama Munson, which has given us so much!

Anyone who would like to receive photos/updates of the project, please contact me through my Gofundme contact form.

Project goals

-Restore biodiversity and improve campsites

-Higher storm surge resistance in future weather events

-Provide restoration opportunities for participants.

Outplantings to date (8/5/22):

3 Geiger

5 sea grape

3 blolly

3 wild dilly

3 white stopper

3 Jamaican caper

1 wild mastic

4 black mangrove

3 spider lilies

3 lignumvitae

4 limber caper

3 buttonwood

1 dogwood

5 seven year apple

1 Keys blackbead

2 black ironwood

2 poisonwood

2 fiddlewood

11 gumbo limbo

10 short leaf fig

Most of the above plants are 3-gallon pot size, from 1 -4 feet tall. Unfortunately, most native species are also slow growing, so although some of these will grow into canopy trees, they are not immediately visually impactful. However, their importance to a healthy island habitat is essential.

Next planting:

2 6ft gumbo limbos

11 6ft short leaf fig

The second batch of larger trees will be planted mid August. Our partner, the Key West Tropical Botanical Garden, generously donated these 33 trees. These taller trees require higher fencing and more staking. Visually, they are more immediately impactful after planting but more costly and time-consuming to place. We hope to balance planting larger trees with clusters of smaller 3-gallon fast-growing species, including gumbo limbos and dogwoods.

Thank you in advance for any and all support!

No raffles, sweepstakes, giveaways, or returns on investment are offered in exchange for any donations made to my GoFundMe.