Once there was a man named Johnny Appleseed. He was born in 1774. He was a kind boy. He loved nature. He loved animals. He loved plants and trees. But most of all, Johnny loved apples.

Johnny learned how to grow apple orchards. An orchard is land with a lot of fruit trees.

Johnny wanted to go west to help the pioneers. Pioneers were people who moved west. They built homes and farms in the west. Johnny wanted to plant apple trees for these families.

Johnny began to walk west. He took apple seeds with him. He did not wear shoes, even in the winter. He wore a potato sack instead of clothes. He wore a tin pot on his head. It was both his hat and his cooking pot. Johnny did not care how he looked. He only cared about being nice. He only cared about helping others.

Johnny walked for hundreds of miles. He slept outside. He did not make a fire, even if he was cold. Sometimes bugs fell into the fire and he didn’t want his fire to hurt bugs. He was kind to all animals. Animals liked and trusted him.

Johnny found an injured wolf. Its leg was stuck in a trap. Johnny saved the wolf. He fixed its leg. The wolf became Johnny’s friend. It went with him everywhere.

Johnny planted seeds all over. He planted them as he walked. He sold some of the trees to pioneers. He sold apple seeds, too. The trees made people happy. So did the apples.

Johnny liked to tell stories. He told good stories. He was welcome everywhere. Everyone liked Johnny Appleseed.

Johnny helped bring apple trees to the west. He planted lots of apple trees. Now apple trees grow all over. This is thanks to one man. His name is Johnny Appleseed.