In 1914, USDA researchers imported Australian melaleuca seeds into the United States. 100 years later, the fast-growing tree had conquered 500,000 acres of South Florida after being planted to help dry the Everglades

Australian melaleuca seeds were imported to the United States in 1914 for agricultural purposes. Later, the Army Corps of Engineers planted melaleuca groves to stabilize Everglades levees. A pilot also scattered seeds from the air to help dry the wetlands. This fast-growing tree eventually spread across half a million acres of South Florida.