Kids wear astronaut costumes. They hold shovels. A wagon rolls into the garden. On the wagon: a silver plant pot marked “NASA.” Inside is a tiny tree.
This tree took a journey only a small group of humans have ever taken. It flew around the Moon. It was just a seed back then. But on Earth, scientists grew it into a seedling. Now a school in California has planted it.
Santiago STEAM Magnet Elementary School in Lake Forest received the honor. Santiago focuses on science and technology. About 500 students attend. On Monday, they planted their “Moon Tree” in a festive ceremony.
“It’s kind of crazy,” says sixth-grader Emily Aguesse. “I’ve always wanted to go to space, but this motivates it even more.”
Scientists don’t know how—or if—space travel affects plant growth. They plan to watch and learn.
NASA has flown seeds into space just two times. The Apollo 14 mission in 1971 also took seeds to the Moon. Later, people planted those seeds in states across America.
The Moon Tree at Santiago flew to space in 2022. It hitched a ride on NASA’s unmanned Artemis I Mission.
NASA and the U.S. Forest Service sent nearly 2,000 seeds around the Moon. Back home, those seeds grew into young sycamores, sweetgums, Douglas firs, loblolly pines, and giant sequoias.
NASA has given away 150 of those seedlings so far. Santiago students planted theirs in a space-themed garden.
The “Moon Tree” is a giant sequoia. Right now, it’s not giant at all. It’s small enough to hold in your hands. But someday, it could grow over 250 feet tall! Giant sequoias are some of the biggest trees in the world. Many grow in California’s redwood forests.
Jesus talked about little seeds becoming huge trees. He said God’s kingdom is like a mustard seed. (Matthew 13) It was one of the smallest seeds farmers in Israel planted. But when it grows, it can grow taller than almost anything else in the garden. Faith as small as a mustard seed can move mountains.
For truly, I say to you, if you have faith like a grain of mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, “Move from here to there,” and it will move, and nothing will be impossible for you. — Matthew 17:20
