Apollo and Artemis Mission Moon Trees in Utah

Utah Moon Trees

The Artemis and Apollo Moon Trees in Utah

The Apollo 14 mission in 1971 had some special cargo on board while it orbited the moon - seeds from five different tree species. Astronaut, and former Forest Service smoke jumper, Stuart Roosa packed them in his belongings and when he returned to Earth, they were germinated by the Forest Service. The trees that grew were planted in locations around the United States and became known as the Apollo Moon Trees.

The Artemis 1 mission in 2022 repeated this seed experiment, and seeds returned to Earth and were germinated, and sent to locations around the United States.

This Utah Moon Trees project documents the history of moon trees in Utah, maps out the locations of current trees, and visits them year to check on their status.

Apollo Moon Trees

Utah received two confirmed Apollo moon trees. The first was planted at the Utah State Capitol building in Salt Lake City in April 1976. The second was planted at the Lone Peak Conservation Center in Draper, Utah. The tree at the Utah State Capitol was damaged during the 1999 tornado, and was removed.

The tree at the Lone Peak Conservation Center is a sycamore, and as of March 2026 is still alive and standing. Right now it is in the middle of a construction zone, due to its adjacency to the old prison site. On weekends when there isn’t construction machinery moving around, you can still drive up to the Conservation Center building. Otherwise the top of the tree is viewable from a nearby park and ride lot.