Showcasing

The first official state tree went up in 1987, after then-governor James Blanchard visited New York City and liked the Christmas tree at Rockefeller Center. Michigan was celebrating its 150th birthday, and the tree seemed like a festive addition to round out a year of celebrating.

You are one with nature, listening to the birds chirp and the squirrels and chipmunks chatter, all the while hoping to get a look at the elusive majestic buck. Pure peace, yet every rustle, every snap, increases your awareness and anticipation.

What’s Thanksgiving dinner without a juicy turkey on the table? From the Michigan Department of Natural Resources family to yours, we’d like to offer some recipes and tips for making the perfect Thanksgiving turkey.

Landowners are sometimes surprised to find someone else owns rights to minerals beneath the surface of their land, and a mineral owner has the right to extract minerals. Mineral rights owned by someone other than the surface owner are rights said to be 'severed.'

"Healthy forests bring immense benefits to the people of Michigan," said Deb Begalle, state forester and chief of the DNR's Forest Resources Division. "Forests help give us clean air and water and provide us with places to hunt, fish, bike or relax."