Get out and enjoy the beauty of April tree blossoms across Iowa neighborhoods. Trees quietly improve our lives in many ways. They’re like superheroes for our health.
Neighborhood trees are like natural air filters, cleaning up the air we breathe and making it fresher. They also help us feel less stressed and more focused. Being around trees has been shown to make us feel better both mentally and physically.
Here’s some fun options for you and your family to celebrate trees near you throughout the year.
- Explore the Iowa's Big Tree Program registry. Whether you’re nominating a new champion, exploring past winners, or marveling the diversity of Iowa trees, we encourage you to discover and appreciate these extraordinary trees.
- Plant a Tree. Follow DNR foresters’ tree planting tips to help it survive and thrive.
- Discover what trees are growing around you. Iowa’s 10 Most Common Urban Trees can help you identify trees in your yard or neighborhood and learn more about each kind of tree.
- Learn how to prevent wildfires. Smokey Bear lives within us all! While at home or on a camping trip, follow these important safety tips.
- Visit a Park and Adopt a Tree. Choose a particular tree to observe. Get better acquainted with your chosen tree by using your senses of sight, touch, hearing, and smell to describe the tree. Find more fun family activities to do when visiting on the Project Learning Tree Exploring a Local Park webpage.
Nature's Calendar
In the world of phenology, there are year-to-year variations in when certain plants emerge and bloom, or when certain animals migrate and mate. One year, bloodroot may bloom earlier than the previous year—or later. These shifts are influenced by short-term weather patterns and long-term climate trends.
Topography also plays a role in plant phenology. On a south-facing hill, where there's more sun exposure and the soil warms earlier in the season, plants tend to bloom sooner than those on the north-facing side of the same hill. Even plants of the same species can be days or even weeks behind their relatives growing on the sunnier slope.
Take It Outside Camps for Kids
Take It Outside State Park Camps are 5-day immersive adventures where campers explore what makes each state park unique and amazing, from its habitats to its history, plants and animals, and the interconnectedness of it all.
The camps are for students entering 3rd-6th grade. Activities incorporate STREAM (science, technology, research, engineering, the arts and math) concepts through exciting adventures focused on forestry, fisheries, wildlife and ecology.
- Walnut Woods State Park (West Des Moines): June 23-27
- Maquoketa Caves State Park (Maquoketa): July 14-18
- Ledges State Park (Madrid): July 21-25
Registration is open until May 30. Enrollment is limited to 30 students per camp.
State Forest Nursery
The Iowa DNR State Forest Nursery offers spring delivery in April and May for hardwood, conifer and shrub seedlings grown from Iowa seed sources.
Seedlings can be ordered through May 23. Visit our State Forest Nursery online store to view seedling varieties and to place your spring order. DNR’s expert nursery staff can assist with species selection and answer questions about your tree needs and nursery offerings.