>> IGNITION SEQUENCE START.
5, 4, 3, 2, 1, 0. LAUNCH COMMENCE.
LIFTOFF. WE HAVE LIFTOFF WITH APOLLO 14
THREE MINUTES PAST THE HOUR. >> APOLLO 14 LAUNCHED ON JANUARY
31st, 1971, FIVE DAYS LATER ASTRONAUTS ALAN SHEPHERD AND
EDGAR MITCHELL WALKED ON THE MOON WHILE STUART A FORMER
SMOKEJUMPER, ORBITED ABOVE IN THE COMMAND MODULE.
PACKED AWAY IN A SMALL CONTAINER WERE OVER 400 TREE SEEDS.
SCIENTISTS WERE CURIOUS TO KNOW IF TREE SEEDS AFTER THEIR
JOURNEY INTO THE MICROGRAVITY OF SPACE WOULD SPROUT AND LOOK THE
SAME AS EARTH-GROWN TREES. >> SO THEY RETURNED FROM THE
MOON TRIP AND DURING THE DECONTAMINATION OF THE SPACE
VEHICLES, THEY THOUGHT THEY WERE DESTROYED.
AND THEY GOT ALL MIXED UP. THEY CAME OUT OF THE CONTAINERS,
AND THEY ENDED UP AT A FOREST SERVICE LAB WHO THEY DECIDED TO
TRY TO SEE IF THEY WOULD GROW. >> AND GROW THEY DID.
THE SEEDLINGS, NOW KNOWN AS MOON TREES, WERE GIVEN AWAY.
MOST OF THEM WERE PLANTED DURING PUBLIC CEREMONIES IN 1976 TO
HELP COMEM RAIMENT THE U.S. BICENTENNIAL.
FIVE OF THESE LUNAR LEGENDS MADE THEIR WAY TO INDIANA.
THERE IS ONE MOON TREE, A SYCAMORE, STILL GROWING ON THE
INDIANA STATEHOUSE PROPERTY IN DOWNTOWN INDIANAPOLIS.
THREE OTHER MOON TREE LOCATIONS ARE IN SOUTHERN INDIANA.
>> I DON'T THINK ANYBODY BACK THEN THOUGHT THAT THEY WERE
GOING TO BE THAT BIG OF A DEAL. AND SO THEY GOT PLANTED ALL OVER
THE WORLD AND COUNTRY, LIKE I SAID, AND NO ONE REALLY WROTE
DOWN WHERE THEY WERE OR IF THEY DID THOSE RECORDS HAVE BEEN
LOST. SO SEVERAL PEOPLE HAVE TAKEN AN
INTEREST IN THE TREES AND HAVE DOCUMENTED TO RIGHT AROUND 80 OF
THEM ACROSS THE COUNTRY, AND WE'RE LUCKY ENOUGH TO HAVE THESE
TWO SWEETGUMS HERE AND THREE OTHER TREES IN THE STATE OF
INDIANA. >> THESE TWO SWEETGUM MOON TREES
ARE LOCATED ON THE PROPERTY OF THE HOOSIER NATIONAL FOREST
RANGER STATION. >> TWO OR THREE PEOPLE STOP BY
EVERY YEAR, AND WE'RE NOT STINGY ABOUT THEM.
THERE IS ONE GENTLEMAN THAT LIVES IN GERMANY THAT ACTUALLY
GOT AHOLD OF US AND HE WAS IN THE STATES AND HE IS COLLECTING
SEEDS FROM THE DIFFERENT MOON TREES AND TAKEN THEM TO
GERMINATE AND LET THEM LIVE ON. WE DID HELP HIM GET SEEDS FROM
THESE TWO TREES AND I'M ASSUMING OTHER PEOPLE THAT HAD THEM ON
THEIR PROPERTY WERE EQUALLY ACCOMMODATING.
THERE WERE SEEDS THEY KEPT ON EARTH FROM THE SAME GENETIC
BACKGROUND THAT THEY GERMINATED AS WELL, AND THERE WASN'T ANY
SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE. SO I DON'T THINK ANYBODY KNEW AT
THE TIME, BUT THAT WAS THE HIGH HYPOTHESIS THAT IT WOULDN'T
MATTER. >> IT'S STARTING TO EXPAND,
WHICH CAN BE PROBLEMATIC. WE'RE GOING TO TREAT IT
CHEMICALLY AND THEN HOPEFULLY IT WILL HEAL THE TREE.
[BIRDS CHIRPING] >> IT'S PROBABLY BEEN FORGOTTEN
A LITTLE BIT, BUT IT'S A NEAT THING TO TALK TO PEOPLE ABOUT
WHEN THEY'RE HERE. EVERY YEAR I GO WORK WITH 5th
GRADE CLASSES AND I ALWAYS TAKE A BRANCH OFF ONE OF THESE TREES
AND TELL THEM THE STORY. HOPEFULLY THAT WILL LIVE ON.
NOT TOO MANY PEOPLE THAT CAN CLAIM THAT THEY HAVE A COUPLE
MOON TREES IN THEIR CITY THAT THEY CAN JUST GO LOOK AT OR HAVE
A PICNIC UNDER. A PIECE OF OUR HISTORY THAT MAY
NOT HAPPEN AGAIN FOR A REALLY LONG TIME, IF AT ALL.
SO I THINK WE NEED TO REMEMBER THEY'RE HERE AND NOT FORGET WHAT
STUART DID. THEY'RE STANDARD ISSUE SWEET
GUMS AS FAR AS I CAN TELL. THEY DO NOT DROP GREEN CHEESE
BALLS THAT I'M AWARE OF. >> JUST A FEW MILES EAST IS THE
HOME OF CAMP COOK GIRL SCOUT
CAMP. THAT'S THE LOCATION OF ANOTHER
INDIANA MOON TREE. >> IF WE HAVE PEOPLE COMING UP
HERE TO CAMP, THE MOON TREE IS TALKED ABOUT A LITTLE BIT.
SO I KNOW OUR CAMPERS AND PEOPLE THAT VISIT ASK QUESTIONS ABOUT
IT. JUST A HISTORY OF BEING A MOON
TREE I THINK IS A GOOD THING FOR US TO RELATE TO, YOU KNOW.
WE ACTUALLY WENT TO THE MOON, TOOK SEEDS, AND IT'S GROWING.
I THINK IT'S PRETTY SIGNIFICANT. >> ONE HAS TO WONDER, THOUGH, IF
A MOON TREE NEEDS ANY KIND OF EXTRA CARE.
>> WE JUST HAVE BEEN TRYING TO GET THE GROUND, GET THE ROOTS
COVERED UP, IT KEEP IT TRIMMED A LITTLE BIT FROM LAYING ON THE
GROUND. WE HAD AN ICE STORM THAT CAME
THROUGH AND BUSTED SOME LIMBS OFF IT BUT IT BLEW THEM AGAIN.
IT JUST FEELS LIKE EVERY OTHER
TREE. IT JUST KEPT GROWING RIGHT BACK.
NO LITTLE MOON MARTIANS OR ANYTHING.
>> WHAT KIND OF EFFECT DOES LONG EXPOSURE TO A MOON TREE HAVE ON
THE HUMAN BODY? ANOTHER MOON TREE IS LOCATED IN
LINCOLN STATE PARK. MICHAEL CRUZ, THE PARK'S
INTERPRETIVE NATURALIST, HAS A LONG HISTORY WITH THIS SITE'S
MOON TREE. >> I KNOW IT WAS THE 200th
ANNIVERSARY OF THE BEGINNING OF THE COUNTRY, SO IT WAS 1976, AND
THERE WAS A BIG GIRL SCOUT ENCAMPMENT AT THE PARK AND
SOMEHOW ONE OF THE GIRL SCOUTS GOT AHOLD OF ONE OF THE
SEEDLINGS AND PLANTED IT HERE ALONG WITH A TIME CAPSULE.
SO THERE WERE HUNDREDS IF NOT THOUSANDS OF GIRL SCOUTS
INVOLVED IN THE PLANTING OF THE TREES ORIGINALLY.
I KNOW MY SISTERS WERE INVOLVED IN IT AND I REMEMBER IT MYSELF
AS A LITTLE KID. I WAS ACTUALLY HERE.
THE TREE SEEMS TO BE NORMAL, AND IT'S FAIRLY HEALTHY, AS FAR AS
I'M CONCERNED. STILL SEEDING.
IT'S GROWING. THE CROWN IS VERY LARGE.
LOOKS LIKE IT'S DOING PRETTY WELL, ACTUALLY.
SO MAYBE THEY'RE STILL SECRETLY LOOKING AT IT.
I DON'T KNOW. IT'S ON OUR LINCOLN STATE PARK
PROPERTY MAPS AS AN ATTRACTION, AND PEOPLE COME JUST TO SEE IT.
I KNOW THAT. I GET A LOT OF QUESTIONS ABOUT
IT, WHERE THE MOON TREE, WHY DO YOU CALL THAT THE MOON TREE?
>> AS THE MOON TREES CONTINUE TO GROW, THEY SERVE AS A REMINDER
OF THE APOLLO PROGRAM'S MANNED MISSIONS TO THE MOON THAN AND AS
A TRIBUTE TO ASTRONAUT RUSSO.
WHILE THEY REACH BACK TO THE MOON THEY ONCE CIRCLED.