State flower: The pink and white “showy” lady slipper, Cypripedium reginae
Year it was voted on as state symbol by Minnesota’s women’s organizations in 1892
Number of contenders for the state symbol designation 4
Year it was designated the state flower 1902
Years it takes to produce its first flower 4-16
Length, in years, a pink and white “showy” lady slipper may live 100
Other orchid species in Minnesota 42
Year the regulation of its collection and sale was enacted 1925
Types of flowers in Minnesota that can’t be distributed without written permission and authorization 10
Master Gardeners in Minnesota in 2016 2,336
Volunteer hours provided by master gardeners in 2016 142,194
Estimated public value of that time $3.6 million
Native flowering plants recommended for landscape use in Minnesota by the Federal Highway Administration 72
Public gardens in Minnesota 45
Minnesota Landscape Arboretum size, in acres 1,200
Display and specialty gardens maintained 32
Plant collections 48
Species and varieties of flowers 5,000
Children who participate in programming each year 50,000
Plant introductions from the Horticultural Research Center 150
Books in the Andersen Horticultural Library 20,000
Items in the seed and nursery catalog collection 66,000
Sources: Revisor of Statutes; Legislative Reference Library; Department of Natural Resources; Minnesota Landscape Arboretum; University of Minnesota Extension; University of Minnesota College of Food, Agricultural and Natural Resource Sciences; U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Highway Administration