March 01, 2023
The Star Tribune's Curious Minnesota series tackles reader questions about the state and its residents. When a reader wrote in to ask how much of Minnesota is covered by forests in comparison to neighboring states, Start Tribune reporter Jeff Hargarten turned to the Department of Forest Resources – and Director of the Center for Forest Ecology Lee Frelich – for help. The resulting article not only answers the percentage of state land covered by forests, it also explores how that coverage has changed over time and the various factors contributing to it.