• Mangroves thrive in salt water areas.Mangrove 3 image by nomad from Fotolia.com
  
  Plants which grow in salt water are called halophytes, whereas plants which need fresh water are called glycophytes. Salt water plants make up only around 2 percent of all of the known plant species. Most of these halophytes live in coastal salt marshes or swamps. Many of the grasses in these areas are planted specifically to help reduce soil erosion in the marshlands in an effort to help the wetlands repair themselves.
  
  

Smooth Cordgrass

• Smooth cordgrass (Spartina alterniflora) is a salt marsh grass that grows primarily on the Gulf and Atlantic coasts. The grass grows to heights of around 4 feet, and has a hollow stem. The leave blades can be as wide as 1/2 inch. Smooth cordgrass flowers in spikes that can grow as long as 3 inches. Smooth cordgrass is deciduous, which means it dies back in fall and winter months. Because smooth cordgrass traps soil in its roots and blades as it filters water, it is planted in many areas for wetland reclamation. Smooth cordgrass also serves as food and shelter for fish and other animals along the marsh edges.
  
  

Mangroves

• While there are several true mangroves, the term is used most often to encompass over 50 different species of halophytic trees. All of these trees are well adapted to living in coastal areas which have loose, wet soil. The trees either grow directly in the salty waters, or thrive in areas that are consistently flooded by salty water. Mangroves are tropical trees, and fill almost 75 percent of tropical coastlines. Like the smooth cordgrass, mangroves stabilize the soil in their surroundings with their complicated root structure. The roots also serve as habitat for fish and other coastal animals.
  
  

Eelgrass

• Eelgrass (Zostera marina) thrives in cooler coastal waters of the North Atlantic and Pacific. You can find eelgrass as far south as North Carolina in the east and California in the west. Eelgrass is vibrant green and long, growing as long as 7 feet. Eelgrass lives completely underwater and is only barely visible at low tide. The plant provides nurseries for fish and other marine life, also serving as a food source. As with other coastal plants, eelgrass helps to slow erosion with its tight root system.