SPRING Tree Installation at the Science Museum Gravel Bed
On May 10th, 2024, Mississippi Park Connection and National Park Service staff worked together to install 525 trees into the Science Museum gravel bed! The gravel beds help the trees grow a fibrous root system that increases survival when planted in the ground. Learn more about gravel beds here!
These species are bound for the floodplains and uplands of Crosby Farm Regional Park. Crosby Farm Regional Park has an ash-elm-dominated floodplain forest but lost much of its ash canopy to the emerald ash borer. Loss of these trees has major ramifications for the floodplain forest's health, along with riverbank erosion and flood abatement.
MPC is working with the City of Saint Paul, which manages Crosby Farm Regional Park, and the National Park Service to plant 1,000 trees in the park this year. The trees in the Science Museum gravel bed will be gently pulled from the gravel bed this fall and later planted in the park. Species selection was based on habitat suitability, including shade tolerance and flood tolerance, and if the species is predicted to persist or do well under future climate conditions, with the aim of getting a high diversity of species planted.
Species include:
Floodplain: bitternut hickory (Carya cordiformis), American hornbeam (Carpinus caroliniana), boxelder (Acer negundo), cottonwood (Populus deltoides), catalpa (Catalpa speciosa), silver maple (Acer saccharinum), swamp white oak (Quercus bicolor), black willow (Salix nigra)
Upland: Quaking aspen (Populus tremuloides), red oak (Quercus rubra), sugar maple (Acer saccharum)
Gravel Bed
Lower
Lower
Lower
Lower
Lower
Lower
Lower
Lower
Lower
Upper
Upper
Upper
Items
bitternut hickory
American hornbeam
boxelder
cottonwood
catalpa
silver maple
swamp white oak
black willow
bitternut hickory
quaking aspen
red oak
sugar maple
Size
2-3'
2-3'
2-3'
2-3'
2-3'
2-3'
2-3'
2-3'
6-12''
2-3'
2-3'
6-12''
Quantity
37
65
85
100
40
90
100
25
13
25
25
20
Mississippi Park Connection hosts habitat restoration volunteer opportunities throughout the year. Discover how you can make an impact by helping to restore thousands of acres of land along the Mississippi River.
This project is funded by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) and the Inflation Reduction Act through cooperative agreements between the Mississippi National River and Recreation Area and Mississippi Park Connection. The Department of the Interior is implementing more than $2 billion in overall investments to restore our nation’s lands and waters, guided by a new restoration and resilience framework to support coordination across agency restoration and resilience programs and drive transformational outcomes.