The Moon Trees: An Astronaut Took Seeds Around the Moon… and They Grew
Part of: Animal Heroes & Amazing Trees
In 1971, the astronaut Stuart Roosa took small bags of tree seeds around the Moon. Back on Earth, the bags broke open. Would the seeds still grow? They did — and you can still see Moon trees today. Learn five A1 words and can / can't with this true story.
Coming 8 December 2026, 3:00 pm New York time
Transcript
Tap a time to jump to that moment. Highlighted words have a meaning: tap them. Words in bold show today's grammar.
An astronaut took tree around the Moon.
Can from space ?
This is the story of the Moon trees.
Welcome to brightlivesenglish.com, where we teach real English using real-life stories.
. A new from a .
The astronaut took tree into space.
. We carry things in a .
The were in small .
. When things , they get bigger.
Little green trees started to .
. When you a tree, you put it in the ground.
People Moon trees all over America.
. A tree goes up and up.
Today, some Moon trees are very .
Now, one pattern: can or can't, plus a verb.
It says what is possible or not.
A .
A can .
You can still see Moon trees today.
Ready? Let's begin.
The astronaut's name was Stuart Roosa.
When he was young, he was a .
He jumped from planes into forests to fight fires!
So in 1971, tree scientists gave him small of .
The went around the Moon 34 times!
Back on Earth, the went into a special machine.
Suddenly, they broke open!
The went everywhere.
Maybe the can't now.
Scientists the .
Then little green trees started to .
More than 400 trees !
Yes, from space can !
Around 1976, people Moon trees all over America.
Today, some Moon trees are very , than a house!
You can still see Moon trees today.
And in 2022, new flew around the Moon.
Now there are new Moon trees, too!
Let's review. The astronaut took tree into space.
The were in small .
Little green trees started to .
People Moon trees all over America.
Today, some Moon trees are very .
And remember: you can still see Moon trees today.
The Moon trees' story teaches us: a small of can go very far, and still .
Want more interesting lessons? Go to brightlivesenglish.com. Please subscribe and learn with us.
Step 3
Words from the story
Say the word, guess its meaning, then flip the card. Keep the ones you know, and practise the rest again.
Great work, you know every word in this story. Now try the quiz below.
seed noun
a small thing that a new plant grows from
“The astronaut took tree seeds into space.”
bag noun
a thing we carry other things in
“The seeds were in small bags.”
grow verb
to get bigger (past: grew)
“Little green trees started to grow.”
plant verb
to put a seed or a young tree in the ground (past: planted)
“People planted Moon trees all over America.”
tall adjective
big from the bottom to the top
“Today, some Moon trees are very tall.”
firefighter noun
a person whose job is to stop fires
“Stuart Roosa was a firefighter in the forests.”
redwood noun
a very tall tree with red-brown wood, from California
“Some Moon trees are redwoods.”
sycamore noun
a big tree with wide leaves and white and grey bark
“The Moon tree at NASA Goddard is a sycamore.”
Grammar in the story
can / can't + verb
We use it for: to say what is possible or not possible now — can + verb, no -s and no to
- A seed grows → A seed can grow
- I see → I can see
- A tree can't walk.
From the story
- You can still see Moon trees today.
- Fish can swim, but they can't walk.
Find it in the story 9 times
Your turn
Birds fly.
A tree walk.
Today, you can Moon trees in many parks.
Step 4
Story Challenge
10 quick rounds: choose, fill the gap, build the sentence and match the words. Answer in a row to build a streak and earn bonus points.
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Take it further
Before you watch: Do you have a favourite tree? Where is it? Do you think seeds can grow after a trip to space?
After you watch: Write three sentences with can or can’t. For example: A seed can grow into a tree. I can see a tall tree from my window. Fish can’t walk.
Think about it: A small bag of seeds went around the Moon and still grew. What small thing can you plant or start today?
Did you know? Stuart Roosa’s job was called smokejumper: firefighters who jump from planes with a parachute to reach forest fires. He took about 500 seeds of five types of trees (some sources say more): loblolly pine, sycamore, sweetgum, redwood and Douglas fir. Scientists also kept the same kinds of seeds on Earth. Years later, they found no difference between the Moon trees and the Earth trees! Most Moon trees were planted in 1975 and 1976, for the 200th birthday of the United States. Moon trees also went to the White House, and to Brazil, Switzerland and Japan. On Artemis I in 2022, about 1,000 new seeds travelled around the Moon — this time with giant sequoia instead of redwood.
Image credits:
- Public domain, NASA: the Apollo 14 launch, 1971; Stuart Roosa, 1970; the Apollo 14 command module, 1971; the Moon tree at NASA Goddard — Pat Izzo; Orion and the Moon on Artemis I, 2022; the Artemis I seed bags — Cory Huston; an Artemis I Moon tree — Aubrey Gemignani
- CC0, Wikimedia Commons: the Moon tree and its plaque at Core Creek Park, Pennsylvania — Plefkag
The other scenes in the video are illustrations.
