Beal Botanical Garden and Campus Arboretum illuminates the interconnectedness of people, plants, and place through learning, research, and stewardship.
Fall Beal Scholar Applications are Open
Applications for our fall Beal Scholars are now open!
These are paid opportunities open to current MSU undergraduate students from any discipline. Beal Scholars are mentored positions, with selected individuals working closely with our staff to implement a chosen project that aims to benefit the garden by contributing to our mission and goals.
We are hiring several positions this fall. Applications close at 7:00 a.m. on August 25, 2025.
MSU Today Faculty Voice: Wild at Heart
See our plant collections through the eyes of our Collections Manager, Katie Fry. Hear how she continues to learn and grow in her role with the garden and how she's helping us grow into a thriving, interconnected ecosystem in this wonderful Faculty Voice article she wrote for MSU Today.
Re-wilding the Heart of Campus
Did you know that MSU’s Beal Botanical Garden was once called the “Wild Garden?” Originally, the garden was more natural and focused on native Michigan plant species. As we envision our future, what garden will grow to become, getting back to our roots has become a priority. By re-wilding the garden, we can bring a dose of nature right to the heart of campus. Your support will help us return to our roots, making campus more sustainable and enhancing educational and research opportunities steps away from campus classrooms.
Walk with Me: An MSU Sound Experience
Explore a section of Michigan State University's campus in a whole new way with this guided audio journey. "Walk with Me: An MSU Sound Experience" is a reflective sound walk that takes you through some of MSU's iconic landmarks. Meant to be an interactive experience, users can listen along with guide Tessa Kresch (Impact 88.9FM Senior News Producer) as they walk a path from the Spartan Statue to Beaumont Tower, including through Beal Botanical Garden. The walk takes approximately 15 minutes and is designed to be both relaxing and thought-provoking.
Image credit: Impact 88.9FM WDBM
Land Acknowledgment
We collectively acknowledge that Michigan State University occupies the ancestral, traditional, and contemporary Lands of the Anishinaabeg—Three Fires Confederacy of Ojibwe, Odawa, and Potawatomi peoples. In particular, the University resides on Land ceded in the 1819 Treaty of Saginaw. We recognize, support, and advocate for the sovereignty of Michigan’s 12 federally recognized Indian nations, for historic Indigenous communities in Michigan, for Indigenous individuals and communities who live here now, and for those who were forcibly removed from their Homelands. By offering this Land Acknowledgement, we affirm Indigenous sovereignty and will work to hold Michigan State University more accountable to the needs of American Indian and Indigenous peoples.