Iowa
New inclusive Treehouse Village offers climbing wall, zipline, slides, accessible features
The Iowa Arboretum & Gardens’ new $2 million Treehouse Village outside of Madrid, meant to inspire curiosity and an appreciation for nature, is nearly complete.
The treehouses and playground will captivate the imaginations of children of all ages and abilities, with several accessible features such as a wheelchair swing.
The fun parts, which include various swing bridges, walkways, and hideouts, are ready for play as crews square away the final details of the remaining infrastructure, like the parking lots and trails.
Wet weather this spring delayed construction, but the grand opening of the Treehouse Village is expected to be in mid-to late August.
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A natural wonderland of fun
With an inclusive playground, three separate treehouses, a suspension bridge, and elevated walkways, the vast Treehouse Village offers many features for active imaginations. Highlights include a climbing wall, a zipline, five slides that are “gecko green,” climbing ropes and ladders, and bouncing nets.
“We were looking for a way to draw more families here — parents with their kids, grandparents with their grandkids,” said Mark Schneider, executive director for the Iowa Arboretum & Gardens. “This will be the only experience like this in the state of Iowa.”
Admission to the arboretum gives visitors access to the Treehouse Village and the rest of the public garden. Annual memberships, which offer unlimited visits, are also available.
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Beanstalk Builders created accessible features
The arboretum used a contractor that specializes in natural playgrounds, treehouses and accessible features. They installed a zipline with a chair to accommodate people of diverse abilities.
“This is an all-inclusive playground, and if you’re in a wheelchair, you’ll be able to get wherever you need to go,” Schneider said during a recent tour of the Treehouse Village.
The new village is put together in an atmosphere that feels magical.
The North Carolina-based contractor even has whimsy built into its name, Beanstalk Builders.
Beanstalk used many natural elements to create the Treehouse Village, including branches of laurel and rope netting. The predominant wood used in the treehouses is black locust, which gives it an architectural feel.
“I didn’t want it to just look like a playground,” Schneider said. “I wanted it to seem to grow out of the woods. And I think Beanstalk Builders accomplished that.”
The playground and treehouses are nestled under a canopy of large oak trees. Treehouse viewing platforms offer sights of the deep valley that winds through the property.
Iowa Arboretum is oldest, largest public garden in Iowa
Established in 1968, the Iowa Arboretum & Gardens is the oldest public garden in the state. It has 28 distinct garden areas, including herb, perennial, butterfly and children’s gardens.
It’s also the state’s largest, at 160 acres. The 40-acre main campus features trees, shrubs, and flowers.
“Our mission has always been about plants and education and nature, and the Treehouse Village is a nice addition to our palette of things we offer to the people that visit the Iowa Arboretum & Gardens,” Schneider said.
The arboretum also offers modern facilities, including restrooms, a gift shop, and venue space. Outdoor spaces are available for events such as garden weddings.
Iowa Arboretum & Gardens is located at 1875 Peach Ave., Madrid. Find it online at iowaarboretum.org.
Ronna Faaborg covers business and the arts for the Ames Tribune. Reach her at rfaaborg@gannett.com.
Nebraska men’s basketball faces a critical week that will determine its Big Ten Conference and NCAA Tournament seeding.
The Huskers play at UCLA on Tuesday night and finish the regular season next Sunday at home vs. Iowa.
The Huskers are currently tied for second place in the Big Ten with Michigan State. Both teams have four conference losses. They are one game in the loss column ahead of Illinois and Purdue, with five losses. Wisconsin has six losses.
The top four teams earn the coveted triple bye for the Big Ten Tournament. Regular-season champion Michigan has one spot locked up.
Here are the remaining schedules of the contenders for the triple bye, with conference record in parentheses:
Nebraska (14-4)
* Tuesday: at UCLA
* Sunday: vs. Iowa
Michigan State (13-4)
* Sunday: at Indiana
* Thursday: vs. Rutgers
* Sunday, March 8: at Michigan
Illinois (13-5)
* Tuesday: vs. Oregon
* Sunday, March 8: at Maryland
Purdue (12-5)
* Sunday: at Ohio State
* Wednesday: at Northwestern
* Saturday: vs. Wisconsin
Wisconsin (12-6)
* Wednesday: vs. Maryland
* Saturday: at Purdue
Maintaining an NCAA seed no worse than 3 should benefit the Huskers, who wouldn’t have to play, theoretically, the No. 1 seed until the Elite Eight game.
It’s a ton to play for in the final week of a historic regular season for Nebraska. But that’s what March is all about.
Nebraska at UCLA
When: Tuesday, 10 p.m. CT
Where: Pauley Pavilion, Los Angeles
Records: Nebraska, 25-4, 14-4 in Big Ten; UCLA, 19-10, 11-7 in Big Ten
TV: FS1
Rankings updated based on games through Saturday.
UCLA rankings
* Associated Press Top 25: Not ranked
* NCAA Net Ratings: 40
* USA Today Coaches Poll: Not ranked
* Kenpom.com: 41
* ESPN Power Index: 34
* Top 25 and 1: Not ranked
* Team Rankings.com: 41
In Joe Lunardi’s latest Bracketology projections for ESPN, UCLA is a 9-seed for the 68-team NCAA Tournament. The next Bracketology will be released Tuesday.
Nebraska rankings
* Associated Press Top 25: 12
* NCAA Net Ratings: 12
* USA Today Coaches Poll: 10
* Kenpom.com: 11
* ESPN Power Index: 15
* Top 25 and 1: 8
* Team Rankings.com: 11
In Joe Lunardi’s latest Bracketology projections for ESPN, Nebraska is a 3-seed for the 68-team NCAA Tournament.
Nebraska-UCLA analysis
The Bruins are coming off a strange week. They crushed visiting rival USC, 81-62, on Tuesday, then lost at Minnesota, 78-73, on Saturday.
UCLA is 16-1 at home, its only loss to Indiana, 98-97, in double overtime on Jan. 31.
The game will be a homecoming for Huskers forward Berke Buyuktuncel, who played at UCLA in 2023-24, his freshman season. Buyuktuncel has started 27 games and averages 6.7 points and 5.6 rebounds per game this season for the Huskers and frequently earns praise from coach Fred Hoiberg.
Nebraska thoroughly dispatched USC on Saturday, 82-67, an impressive performance on the road against a Trojans team desperate for a statement win to help — or save — their NCAA hopes.
Pryce Sandfort scored 32 points — one short of his career high — as the Huskers won their 14th conference game, a school record. Nebraska is 7-2 on the road in conference games.
This should be a great matchup — UCLA a strong team playing at home vs. a Nebraska team playing well and full of confidence. This feels like a one-possession game.
Iowa at Nebraska
When: Sunday, March 8, 4 p.m. CT
Where: Pinnacle Bank Arena
Records: Nebraska, 25-4, 14-4 in Big Ten; Iowa, 20-9, 10-8 in Big Ten
TV: Fox
Rankings updated based on games through Saturday.
Iowa rankings
* Associated Press Top 25: 33
* NCAA Net Ratings: 28
* USA Today Coaches Poll: 30
* Kenpom.com: 24
* ESPN Power Index: 35
* Top 25 and 1: Not ranked
* Team Rankings.com: 31
In Joe Lunardi’s latest Bracketology projections for ESPN, Iowa is an 8-seed for the 68-team NCAA Tournament.
Nebraska rankings
* Associated Press Top 25: 12
* NCAA Net Ratings: 12
* USA Today Coaches Poll: 10
* Kenpom.com: 11
* ESPN Power Index: 15
* Top 25 and 1: 8
* Team Rankings.com: 11
In Joe Lunardi’s latest Bracketology projections for ESPN, Nebraska is a 3-seed for the 68-team NCAA Tournament.
Nebraska-Iowa analysis
The Hawkeyes are coming off a puzzling, 71-69 loss at Penn State on Saturday. Iowa led 67-62 with 3:49 to play, and then scored only one more basket. Iowa plays host to Michigan on Thursday.
Nebraska will get a final curtain call at Pinnacle Bank Arena, where the Huskers are 15-2.
Nebraska should have revenge on its mind after losing at Iowa, 57-52, on Feb. 17, in Sandfort’s return to Iowa City, where he played for two seasons.
Whatever Nebraska nerves were a factor at Iowa shouldn’t be in play at Pinnacle Bank Arena. Nebraska shot only 21 percent from distance in Iowa City. Sandfort scored 13 points, his lowest total since Jan. 10, when he scored 12 at Indiana.
Iowa’s Bennett Stirtz scored 25 points. That won’t happen in this game. Neither will Nebraska’s ice-cold shooting from distance, especially if the game could determine the triple bye for the Huskers.
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The Class 1A and Class 2A Iowa high school boys basketball state tournament brackets are now official following substate action.
The Iowa High School Athletic Association Boys State Tournament begins Monday, March 9 from the Casey’s Center in Des Moines, Iowa.
St. Edmond, the top-seed in 1A, gets Woodbine in a rematch of a quarterfinal from a year ago. Woodbine ended the run of defending state champion Madrid in a substate final on the same court that St. Edmond qualified on when they defeated Riverside.
Burlington Notre Dame plays Bellevue, MMCRU meets Boyden-Hull and Bishop Garrigan battles Bellevue Marquette Catholic in the other elite eight games.
The other substate finals saw Burlington Notre Dame defeat Calamus-Wheatland, MMCRU eliminated North Union, Bishop Garrigan downed South Winneshiek, Bellevue bested East Marshall and Bellevue Marquette Catholic topped Montezuma.
In 2A, Kuemper Catholic is the No. 1 seed and will face Union Community in the opening game on Wednesday, March 11. The other quarterfinals see Treynor vs. Grundy Center, Unity Christian vs. defending state champion Western Christian and Iowa City Regina vs. Aplington-Parkersburg.
Kuemper Catholic survived vs. Roland-Story, Union knocked off Pella Christian in a nail-biter, Treynor bested Underwood, Grundy Center downed Beckman Catholic, Unity Christian handled Southeast Valley, Western Christian ran past Tri-Center, Iowa City Regina downed Northeast and Aplington-Parkersburg defeated Cascade.
Here are the Iowa High School Athletic Association Boys State Basketball Tournament pairings for Class 1A and Class 2A.
Quarterfinals
Tuesday, March 10
Semifinals
Thursday, March 12
Championship
Friday, March 13
Wednesday, March 11
Semifinals
Thursday, March 12
Championship
Friday, March 13
SAINT PAUL, Minn. – Minnesota Wild President of Hockey Operations and General Manager Bill Guerin today announced the National Hockey League (NHL) club has recalled forward Tyler Pitlick from the Iowa Wild of the American Hockey League (AHL).
Pitlick, 34 (11/1/91), has tallied two goals, 24 penalty minutes (PIM) and 26 shots in 31 games with Minnesota this season and ranks fourth on the team with 76 hits. He has also collected 11 points (8-3=11) and 31 shots in 12 games with Iowa. The 6-foot-2, 201-pound native of Minneapolis, Minn., owns 111 points (58-53=111) and 565 shots on goal in 451 career NHL games over 11 seasons with the Edmonton Oilers (2013-17), Dallas Stars (2017-19), Philadelphia Flyers (2019-20), Arizona Coyotes (2020-21), Calgary Flames (2021-22), Montreal Canadiens (2021-22), St. Louis Blues (2022-23), New York Rangers (2023-24) and Minnesota (2025-26). He has tallied three points (2-1=3) in 22 career Stanley Cup Playoff games. Pitlick has also recorded 140 points (60-89=149) in 289 career AHL games in parts of eight seasons with the Oklahoma City Barons (2011-15), Bakersfield Condors (2015-16), Hartford Wolf Pack (2023-24), Providence Bruins (2024-25) and Iowa (2025). He was originally selected by the Edmonton Oilers in the second round (31st overall) of the 2010 NHL Draft. Pitlick was signed by Minnesota as a free agent on July 2, 2025, and wears sweater No. 19 with the Wild.
Minnesota hosts the St. Louis Blues tomorrow at 4 p.m. CT on FanDuel Sports Network and KFAN FM 100.3.
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