Moon trees are trees grown from 500 seeds taken into orbit around the moon by Stuart Roosa

Stuart Roosa

Stuart Allen Roosa was a NASA astronaut, who was the command module pilot for the Apollo 14 mission. The mission lasted from January 31 to February 9, 1971 and was the third mission to land astronauts on the Moon...

 during the Apollo 14

Apollo 14

Apollo 14 was the eighth manned mission in the American Apollo program, and the third to land on the Moon. It was the last of the "H missions", targeted landings with two-day stays on the Moon with two lunar EVAs, or moonwalks....

 mission in 1971. As the Command Module Pilot on the Apollo 14 mission, and because he was a former smoke jumper, Roosa was contacted by Ed Cliff, who was the Chief of the Forest Service at the time, and who proposed the idea of taking the seeds along. Seeds for the experiment were chosen from five different types of trees: Loblolly Pine

Loblolly Pine

Pinus taeda is one of several pines native to the Southeastern United States, from central Texas east to Florida, and north to Delaware. It is particularly dominant in the eastern half of North Carolina, where there are huge expanses consisting solely of Loblolly Pine trees...

, Sycamore

Sycamore

Sycamore is a name which is applied at various times and places to three very different types of trees, but with somewhat similar leaf forms....

, Sweetgum, Redwood

Redwood

-Trees:Conifers* Family Cupressaceae *** Sequoia sempervirens - coast redwood**** Albino redwood*** Sequoiadendron giganteum - giant sequoia*** Metasequoia glyptostroboides - dawn redwood* Family Pinaceae...

, and Douglas Fir.

Trees used

After the flight the seeds were sent to the southern Forest Service

United States Forest Service

The United States Forest Service is an agency of the United States Department of Agriculture that administers the nation's 155 national forests and 20 national grasslands, which encompass...

 station in Gulfport, Mississippi

Mississippi

Mississippi is a U.S. state located in the Southern United States. Jackson is the state capital and largest city. The name of the state derives from the Mississippi River, which flows along its western boundary, whose name comes from the Ojibwe word misi-ziibi...

, and to the western station in Placerville, California

Placerville, California

Placerville is the county seat of El Dorado County, California. The population was 10,389 at the 2010 census, up from 9,610 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Sacramento–Arden-Arcade–Roseville Metropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:...

, with the intent to germinate

Germination

Germination is the process in which a plant or fungus emerges from a seed or spore, respectively, and begins growth. The most common example of germination is the sprouting of a seedling from a seed of an angiosperm or gymnosperm. However the growth of a sporeling from a spore, for example the...

 them. Nearly all the seeds germinated successfully, and the Forest Service had some 420 to 450 seedlings after a few years. Some of these were planted alongside their earth-bound counterparts, which were specifically set aside as controls. After over twenty years there is no discernible difference between the two classes of trees. Most of the "Moon trees" were given away in 1975 and 1976 to many state forestry organizations, in order to be planted as part of the nation's bicentennial celebration. Since the trees were all of southern and western species, not all states received trees. A Loblolly Pine

Loblolly Pine

Pinus taeda is one of several pines native to the Southeastern United States, from central Texas east to Florida, and north to Delaware. It is particularly dominant in the eastern half of North Carolina, where there are huge expanses consisting solely of Loblolly Pine trees...

 was planted at the White House

White House

The White House is the official residence and principal workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., the house was designed by Irish-born James Hoban, and built between 1792 and 1800 of white-painted Aquia sandstone in the Neoclassical...

, and trees were planted in Brazil

Brazil

Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...

, Switzerland

Switzerland

Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....

, and presented to the Emperor of Japan

Emperor of Japan

The Emperor of Japan is, according to the 1947 Constitution of Japan, "the symbol of the state and of the unity of the people." He is a ceremonial figurehead under a form of constitutional monarchy and is head of the Japanese Imperial Family with functions as head of state. He is also the highest...

, among others.

City and State	Location	Type of Tree	Planting Date
Auburn University Auburn University Auburn University is a public university located in Auburn, Alabama, United States. With more than 25,000 students and 1,200 faculty members, it is one of the largest universities in the state. Auburn was chartered on February 7, 1856, as the East Alabama Male College, a private liberal arts... , Alabama	G.W. Andrews Forestry Sciences Lab	Loblolly Pine Loblolly Pine Pinus taeda is one of several pines native to the Southeastern United States, from central Texas east to Florida, and north to Delaware. It is particularly dominant in the eastern half of North Carolina, where there are huge expanses consisting solely of Loblolly Pine trees...	22 October 1976
Birmingham, Alabama	Birmingham Botanical Garden	Sycamore Sycamore Sycamore is a name which is applied at various times and places to three very different types of trees, but with somewhat similar leaf forms....	April 1976
Montgomery, Alabama	State Capitol Alabama State Capitol The Alabama State Capitol, also known as the First Confederate Capitol, is the state capitol building for Alabama. It is located on Capitol Hill, originally Goat Hill, in Montgomery. It was declared a National Historic Landmark on December 19, 1960....	Loblolly Pine	April 1976
Troy, Alabama Troy, Alabama Troy is a city in Pike County, Alabama, United States. As of the 2010 census, the population was 18,003. Troy experienced a growth spurt of over 4,000+ people since 2000. The city is the county seat of Pike County....	Pioneer Museum of Alabama	Loblolly Pine	5 August 1976
Tuscumbia, Alabama	Ivy Green	Loblolly Pine	19 October 1976
Flagstaff, Arizona	Flagstaff Jr. High School	Douglas Fir	30 April 1976
University of Arizona University of Arizona The University of Arizona is a land-grant and space-grant public institution of higher education and research located in Tucson, Arizona, United States. The University of Arizona was the first university in the state of Arizona, founded in 1885... , Tucson Arizona	Kuiper Space Sciences Building	Sycamore	30 April 1976
Ft. Smith, Arkansas Fort Smith, Arkansas Fort Smith is the second-largest city in Arkansas and one of the two county seats of Sebastian County. With a population of 86,209 in 2010, it is the principal city of the Fort Smith, Arkansas-Oklahoma Metropolitan Statistical Area, a region of 298,592 residents which encompasses the Arkansas...	Sebastian County Courthouse	Loblolly Pine	15 March 1976
Washington, Arkansas	Old Washington Historic State Park Old Washington Historic State Park Historic Washington State Park is a museum village located off United States Highway 278 in Washington, Arkansas. The state park opened in 1973 as Old Washington Historic State Park but was renamed in September 2006. It offers visitors walking guided tours which interpret the history of this...	Loblolly Pine	15 March 1976
Arcata, California	Humboldt State University Humboldt State University Humboldt State University is the northernmost campus of the California State University system, located in Arcata within Humboldt County, California, USA. The main campus, nestled at the edge of a coast redwood forest, is situated on Preston hill overlooking Arcata and with commanding views of...	3 Redwoods
Berkeley, California	Tilden Nature Area	Redwood	26 July 1976
Monterey, California	Friendly Plaza	Redwood	July 1976
San Luis Obispo, California Mission San Luis Obispo de Tolosa Mission San Luis Obispo de Tolosa was founded 1772 on the Central Coast of California on a site located halfway between Santa Barbara and Monterey. It was named after Saint Louis of Anjou, the bishop of Toulouse. The Mission church of San Luis Obispo is unusual in its design in that its...	Mission Plaza	Redwood	30 July 1976
Cape Canaveral, Florida	Kennedy Space Center Kennedy Space Center The John F. Kennedy Space Center is the NASA installation that has been the launch site for every United States human space flight since 1968. Although such flights are currently on hiatus, KSC continues to manage and operate unmanned rocket launch facilities for America's civilian space program...	Sycamore	25 June 1976
Gainesville, Florida	University of Florida University of Florida The University of Florida is an American public land-grant, sea-grant, and space-grant research university located on a campus in Gainesville, Florida. The university traces its historical origins to 1853, and has operated continuously on its present Gainesville campus since September 1906...	Sycamore
Perry, Florida	Forest Capital Museum State Park Forest Capital Museum State Park Forest Capital State Museum is a Florida State Park located south of Perry on US 19/US 98. The museum contains displays that recount the history of the forest industry as well as the wildlife of the forest...	Loblolly Pine	26 April 1978
Tallahassee, Florida	Cascades Park Cascades Park (Tallahassee) Cascades Park is a park along the stream known as the St. Augustine Branch in Tallahassee, Florida, south of the Florida State Capitol. It is a Nationally Registered Historic Place because it influenced the territorial government's choice of the capital city's location.As of 2006, most of the park...	Sycamore
Tallahassee, Florida	Doyle Conner Building	Loblolly Pine
Boise, Idaho	Lowell Elementary School	Loblolly Pine	1977
Moscow, Idaho	University of Idaho University of Idaho The University of Idaho is the State of Idaho's flagship and oldest public university, located in the rural city of Moscow in Latah County in the northern portion of the state...	Sycamore
Cannelton, Indiana	Camp Koch Girl Scout Camp	Sycamore	1976
Indianapolis, Indiana	Indiana Statehouse	Sycamore	9 April 1976
Lincoln City, Indiana	Lincoln State Park Lincoln State Park Lincoln State Park is an Indiana state park. It is east of Evansville, IN.Lincoln State Park is located in southern Indiana in Spencer County approximately east of Evansville. The park was established in 1932 and encompasses . There are of trails in the park...	Sycamore	1 May 1976
Tell City, Indiana	Forest Service Office	2 Sweetgums	1976
Atchison, Kansas	International Forest of Friendship	Sycamore
Elmer, Louisiana	Palustris Experimental Forest	Loblolly Pine	April 1976
New Orleans, Louisiana	New Orleans River Walk	Loblolly Pine	June 1983
Bethesda, Maryland	Society of American Foresters	Loblolly Pine	30 September 1975
Greenbelt, Maryland	Goddard Space Flight Center Goddard Space Flight Center The Goddard Space Flight Center is a major NASA space research laboratory established on May 1, 1959 as NASA's first space flight center. GSFC employs approximately 10,000 civil servants and contractors, and is located approximately northeast of Washington, D.C. in Greenbelt, Maryland, USA. GSFC,...	Sycamore	9 June 1977
Holliston, Massachusetts	Holliston Police Station	Sycamore	April 1976
Mississippi St. Univ., Mississippi	Dorman Hall	Sycamore	1975
Waynesboro, Mississippi	Forestry Commission Nursery	Sycamore
DeSoto, Missouri	Walthers Park	Sycamore
Pisgah National Forest, North Carolina Pisgah National Forest Pisgah National Forest is a National Forest in the Appalachian Mountains of western North Carolina. It is administered by the United States Forest Service, part of the United States Department of Agriculture. The Pisgah National Forest is completely contained within the state of North Carolina...	Cradle of Forestry	Sycamore
South Brunswick, New Jersey	South Brunswick High School	Sycamore
Jefferson County, Ohio	Friendship Park	Sycamore	29 July 1976
University of Oregon, Eugene Oregon	Erb Memorial Union	Douglas Fir
Roseburg, Oregon	U.S. Veteran's Hospital	Douglas Fir	3 May 1976
Oregon State University, Corvallis Oregon Oregon State University Oregon State University is a coeducational, public research university located in Corvallis, Oregon, United States. The university offers undergraduate, graduate and doctoral degrees and a multitude of research opportunities. There are more than 200 academic degree programs offered through the...	Peavy Hall	Douglas Fir	1976
Salem, Oregon	State Capitol Building	Douglas Fir	30 April 1976
Salem, Oregon	Private Residence	2 Douglas Firs	1973
Ebensburg, Pennsylvania Ebensburg, Pennsylvania Ebensburg is a borough located in, and is the seat of, Cambria County, Pennsylvania, west of Altoona and surrounded by Cambria Township. It is situated in the Alleghenies about 2025 feet above sea level. Ebensburg is located in a rich bituminous coal region. In the past, saw mills, tanneries,...	Cambria County Courthouse	Sycamore	29 June 1976
Hollidaysburg, Pennsylvania Hollidaysburg, Pennsylvania Hollidaysburg is a borough in Blair County, Pennsylvania, on the Juniata River, south of Altoona. It is the county seat of Blair County. It is part of the Altoona, Pennsylvania, Metropolitan Statistical Area and is one of the communities that comprises the Altoona Urban Area...	Highland Hall	Sycamore	5 May 1976
King of Prussia, Pennsylvania	Lockheed Martin Lockheed Martin Lockheed Martin is an American global aerospace, defense, security, and advanced technology company with worldwide interests. It was formed by the merger of Lockheed Corporation with Martin Marietta in March 1995. It is headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland, in the Washington Metropolitan Area....  Space Systems Building	Sycamore	30 June 1976
Newtown/Langhorne, Pennsylvania	Core Creek Park Core Creek Park Core Creek Park, a county park within Bucks County, Pennsylvania. It sits within Middletown Township on . The park surrounds Lake Luxembourg. The park opens at dawn and closes at dusk.-Recreation:...	Sycamore	30 April 1976
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania	Washington Square Washington Square (Philadelphia) Washington Square, originally designated in 1682 as Southeast Square, is an open-space park in Center City Philadelphia's Southeast quadrant and one of the five original planned squares laid out on the city grid by William Penn's surveyor, Thomas Holme. It is part of both the Washington Square West...	Sycamore*	6 May 1975
Knoxville, Tennessee	University of Tennessee University of Tennessee The University of Tennessee is a public land-grant university headquartered at Knoxville, Tennessee, United States...	Loblolly Pine	April 1976
Sewanee, Tennessee	University of the South	Sycamore	April 1976
Tullahoma, Tennessee	Arnold Air Force Base Arnold Air Force Base Arnold Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base located in Coffee and Franklin counties, Tennessee, adjacent to the city of Tullahoma. It is named for General Henry "Hap" Arnold, the father of the U.S. Air Force....	Loblolly Pine	April 1976
Olympia, Washington	State Capitol Building Washington State Capitol The Washington State Capitol or Legislative Building in Olympia is the home of the government of the state of Washington. It contains chambers for the Washington State Legislature and offices for the governor, lieutenant governor, secretary of state and treasurer and is part of a campus consisting...	Douglas Fir
Huntsville, Alabama	U.S. Space and Rocket Center	5 Sycamores, 2 Pines *	29 October 1976
Tuskegee, Alabama	VA Hospital (CAVHCS)	Loblolly Pine *	1976
Little Rock, Arkansas Little Rock, Arkansas Little Rock is the capital and the largest city of the U.S. state of Arkansas. The Metropolitan Statistical Area had a population of 699,757 people in the 2010 census...	Forestry Commission Headquarters	Loblolly Pine *	15 March 1976
Monticello, Arkansas	University of Arkansas at Monticello University of Arkansas at Monticello The University of Arkansas at Monticello is a public university and college for vocational and technical education located in Monticello, Arkansas, United States....	Loblolly Pine *	1977?
New Orleans, Louisiana	NASA Michoud Assembly Facility Michoud Assembly Facility The Michoud Assembly Facility is an 832-acre site owned by NASA and located in New Orleans East, a large district within the city of New Orleans, Louisiana, United States. Organizationally, it is part of NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center...	Loblolly Pine (2?) *	July 1976
North Pembroke, Massachusetts	Historical Society	Sycamore? *	April 1976
Albuquerque, New Mexico	Civic Plaza	Douglas Fir *
Illinois Valley, Oregon	Siskiyou Smoke Jumper Base	Douglas Fir *
Washington, D.C.	White House White House The White House is the official residence and principal workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., the house was designed by Irish-born James Hoban, and built between 1792 and 1800 of white-painted Aquia sandstone in the Neoclassical...	Loblolly Pine *	19 January 1977
Plano, Texas Plano, Texas Plano is a city in the state of Texas, located mostly within Collin County. The city's population was 259,841 at the 2010 census, making it the ninth-largest city in Texas and the 71st most populous city in the United States. Plano is located within the metropolitan area commonly referred to as...	Plano Senior High School Plano Senior High School Plano Senior High School is a public secondary school in Plano, Texas, USA, serving students in grades 11–12. The school is part of the Plano Independent School District, with admission based primarily on the locations of students' homes...	Sycamore Platanus Platanus is a small genus of trees native to the Northern Hemisphere. They are the sole living members of the family Platanaceae....	4 November 2009

An asterisk (*) mark denotes a tree that is no longer alive.

External links

• The Moon Trees
• BBC News Article
• Science Daily: Race Against Time to Find Apollo 14's Lost Voyagers: 'Moon Trees'