Praça Central São José

Cambará do Sul, Brazil

[the Brazil Moon Tree] [the Brazil Moon Tree Plaque]

Coast redwood (Sequoia sempervirens) planted in the Praça Central São José (St. Joseph Central Square), in the city of Cambará do Sul, in the Rio Grande do Sul province in southern Brazil on 26 September 1982. Cambará do Sul was chosen as the site for the tree in a lottery among the cities in the southern mountainous Serra Gaúcha area. The tree was planted as part of a "Tree Fest" celebration. A newspaper from the event states “And the mayor also planted a sequoia seedling (a tree that was germinated in lunar ground), provided by the Brazilian Institute for Forestry Development’s delegate”. (The statement about the tree being germinated in lunar ground is incorrect, no lunar soil was involved with the growing of these trees.) The Brazilian Institute for Forestry Development (IBDF), which provided the tree, is now IBAMA, home of another Moon Tree at its office in Brasilia.

The Cambará do Sul tree is now (c. 2020) about 30 meters high with a diameter of 70 cm.

There are two signs by the tree (above), in Portuguese. Translated into English, the sign on the left says:

Lunar Redwood
"Sequoia sempervirens"
The space mission named "Apollo 14",
took with itself some seeds of redwood
with the astronaut Stuart Roosa.
After sprouting with lunar soil, the
seeds of the tree returned to Earth in
1971, when they were distributed to various
countries in the world.

One of these saplings was planted in Cambará
do Sul/RS at Saint Joseph Central Square, on the day
26 of September of 1982, by then mayor
of the city at the time, Mr Pedro Teixeira
Constantino, with the presence of local authorities
and witnesses of the cambaraense people,
who witnessed the historic moment. "

[RS stands for Rio Grande do Sul province]. The phrase about "sprouting with lunar soil" is not correct, see above.

The sign on the right reads "Lunar Redwood".

[the Cambara Tree and Church] [the Cambara Tree Fest Plaque]

A metal sign is in the square (above), a rough English translation is:

"FEST OF THE TREES
At the annual tree fest of 1982,
the cambaraense youth planted saplings
from Cambará on this square and made the
promise as defenders of trees, so
that, at the limit of the next century, we may
deliver this municipality as the
Symphony of Nature, forever,
protecting our land.

Pedro Teixeira Constantino
Town Mayor
Cambará do Sul, 26 of September of 1982."

Tree located at 29.049054 S, 50.145449 W

Images and information courtesy of Jonathas Braga Baker (top and middle images), Polliane Nunes (bottom images), and Juliana Forner.

[the Cambara Tree Map] [the Brazil Moon Tree Sign]

Sequoia from Cambará do Sul could be a remnant of NASA's experience in space (Portuguese) - GZH, 25 August 2014
Sequoia from Cambará do Sul could be a remnant of NASA's experience in space (English translation)
Cambará do Sul article on the "Sequoia Lunar" (Portuguese)
Moon Tree Home Page

NASA
Author/Curator:
Dr. David R. Williams, dave.williams@nasa.gov
NSSDCA, Mail Code 690.1
NASA Goddard Space Flight Center
Greenbelt, MD 20771
+1-301-286-1258

NASA Official: Dave Williams, david.r.williams@nasa.gov
Last Updated: 15 March 2021, DRW