1. Presentation and Wordsearch
Top 10 Plants

2. Alfalfa Plains Nutritious plant that fuelled dairy industry
Helps replenish soil nutrients
Holds soil together and prevents erosion.
Most common variety bred in the 1850s by Wendelin Grimm, which is much more cold-tolerant than the original version.

3. American Elm Forest Gracefully shaded city streets for decades
Grew well in cities, even with road salt, air pollution and compacted soil
Dutch Elm Disease entered Minnesota in 1961 and killed nearly 140 million elms.
The disease is spread by bark beetles and from root to root.

4. Forest
Apples
The first apple variety to successfully survive Minnesotan winters was bred in 1868 by Peter. M. Gideon and named ‘Wealthy’.
In 1991 the variety ‘Honeycrisp’ was bred and became the most successful apple from the University of Minnesota, with over 5 million trees planted worldwide.
The success of ‘Honeycrisp’ came from its sweet-tart flavor, crisp texture, and ability to store well.

5. Plains
Corn
One of the top ten corn growers in the U.S., Minnesota grew $7 billion worth of corn in 2012.
Bred from a Mexican grass by Native Americans.
Nitrogen fertilizers for corn get washed out to sea, causing a large dead zone in the Gulf of Mexico.

6. Plains
Corn continued
During Prohibition it was used to make a popular kind of moonshine named Minnesota 13, after the variety of corn it was made from.
Corn is also used to make cornstarch, ethanol, and corn syrup.

7. Purple Loosestrife Wetlands Invasive wetland plant
Came to America in the 1800s and caused few problems until the 1920s when it bred with the native loosestrife
Crowds out native plants that give habitat for many animals.
Controlled by the 1990s with leaf beetles

8. Soybeans Plains Minnesota grew $3 million worth of soybeans in 2011.
Adds nitrogen to fertilize soil
Soybeans are a cheap, high-quality animal feed
Has uses in many fields, including culinary, medical and industrial.
Used in vegetable oil, lubricants, and antibiotics

9. Plains, City
Lawngrass
The background of American life- found in yards, game fields, parks, even business parks.
Made possible for the majority of Americans through the invention of the rubber hose and the reel mower in the early 1800s
Protects soil from erosion and absorbs heat, purifies water and captures dust
Extra fertilizer washes into lakes and rivers, growing algae

10. Plains
Wheat
The power of St. Anthony Falls and the railroads made flour milling and wheat farming popular in Minnesota.
Minnesota became the world’s leading flour-milling center by 1882.
From the 1930s to the 1970s stem rust destroyed 30-50% of the wheat in the Upper Midwest- in 1965 the University of Minnesota introduced a rust-resistant variety called ‘Chris’.
A more detailed explanation of Minnesota's history with wheat can be found here.

11. Forest
White Pine
Fuelled lumber industry as its wood was easy to cut, good quality, and floated well down to the sawmill.
Minnesotan stands of white pine seemed infinite in the 1850s and Minneapolis became the leading producer of lumber in the world.
Production began to fall by the 1920s as the trees became less common and loggers moved to the Pacific Northwest.
Only 2% of Minnesotan white pine remained by 1990, and only a small fraction were mature.

12. Wetlands
Wild Rice
Eaten by fish, water birds and muskrats, as well as people.
Main food of many Great Lakes native tribes as it can be stored for a long time once harvested and dried.
It is still mainly harvested by canoe and two beater sticks.
Wild rice is an annual plant, dying in the fall and growing from seeds in the spring.

13. Word Search

14. ALFALFA APPLE CORN DUTCH ELM DISEASE ELM FLOUR GRIMM HONEYCRISP LAWN
Keoni Wong 2013
ALFALFA
APPLE
CORN
DUTCH ELM DISEASE
ELM
FLOUR
GRIMM
HONEYCRISP
LAWN
LOOSESTRIFE
LUMBER
MINNESOTA
PINE
SOYBEAN
WHEAT
WILD RICE