SHREVEPORT, Louisiana (KSLA) – Originally just a stick, NASA’s Moon Tree has grown two feet since being received by Shreve Island Elementary School.

For nearly an entire school year, Shreve Island Elementary students worked on a research project to win a NASA Moon Tree, and out of 1,300 applicants, they won one of the first 50 Moon Trees.

“When it arrived it had no leaves, the kids called it the moon stick because it was just a stick. Now it’s planted on campus, surrounded by mulch and has probably grown two feet,” says teacher Katie Chirhart.

The new school year has begun and although it is still a young tree, it is growing with the help of its parents.

“They have built a fence around it, planted it, put down mulch and taken very good care of it and will continue to take good care of it,” Chirhart says.

The Moon Tree Project began fifty years ago with the Apollo mission that put the first moon trees in the air. Today, the Moon Tree at Shreve Island Elementary is part of another mission.

“The Artemis mission was on its way to Mars. So the seeds were on board the space shuttle Orion, they orbited the moon, flew around it once and landed. When they landed two years ago, they were planted there by the Forest Service and monitored and cared for,” says Chirhart.

Pupils from grades 3 to 5 prepared for the tree with numerous experiments and research.

“They tested the soil, they tested the lighting conditions in different places on campus, and they researched the different types of trees that fly in space to see what would work on Shreve Island,” Chithart says.

For more details on how the students researched and won their moon tree, visit https://www.ksla.com/2024/05/03/shreveport-school-selected-home-nasa-artemis-moon-tree/.

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