At the Morton Arboretum there is a continuous effort to learn more about the adaptability of trees and shrubs to the special growing conditions of northern Illinois, especially the soils and climate. The natural forests are being used as an outdoor laboratory for ecological studies, and certain cultivated collections are experimental. The Street Tree Collection, for example, is a large experimental assemblage of various trees thought to be suitable for street and shade purposes. The Heath (Ericaceous) Collection is valuable in determining the cultural requirements for growing certain azaleas and rhododendrons in northern Illinois.
The Morton Arboretum has been designed for learning through outdoor experiences. The grounds are open every day of the year, and visitors are always welcome. A modest admission fee is charged for each car entering. In the Visitor Center, an overall orientation is offered through exhibits and audio-visual presentations explaining the purposes and functions of the Arboretum. Groups planning to visit should request advance information about seasonal features, current hours, special programs, and eating facilities. The varied opportunities and abundant facilities at the Morton Arboretum make visits both pleasant and memorable.
The Illinois Natural History Survey is a research organization devoted to the scientific study of the living natural resources of Illinois. It is one of the Divisions of the Department of Registration and Education and is administered by a Board of Natural Resources and Conservation, consisting of the Director of the Department, the President of the University of Illinois, or his representative, the President of Southern Illinois University, or his representative, members and experts in the fields of geology, biology, chemistry, forestry, and engineering.
The Survey is organized into sections, five of which are engaged in scientific pursuits. These are aquatic biology, botany and plant pathology, economic entomology, faunistic survey, and wildlife. These sections pursue basic and scientific research in systematics, ecology, environmental quality, and control of plant diseases and insect pests. The zoological collections of the Survey, numbering about 8,800,000 specimens, rank among the largest and most valuable in the world. The botanical collections are smaller in size. The vascular plant collections number over 145,000 specimens that are most representative for studies of distribution in Illinois. The mycological collections, with more than 35,000 specimens, include numerous types that are basic to scientific research.
The Survey is housed in the Natural Resources Building and the Natural Resources Studies Annex on the campus of the University of Illinois, Urbana. In addition, the Survey maintains special research facilities at Fox Ridge State Park, Stephen A. Forbes State Park, Havana, Sullivan, and elsewhere for studies of pond management, prairie chickens, pheasants, waterfowl, fish, and wildlife.
Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, has both a Department of Botany and a Department of Forestry where students may select courses from a broad curriculum to study various aspects of plant life. Many forest-oriented courses are available, and most of them include actual work in the field. The University has an arboretum on campus where ornamental species are emphasized. Guided tours of these arboreta, as well as of the display greenhouse, can be arranged by contacting the Chairman of the Department of Botany, Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, Illinois 62901.
The department has programs in instruction, research and public service. The instructional program offers professional undergraduate training in forest science and wood science and these are accredited by the Society of American Foresters. Graduate training is provided only at the Master’s level within the department. Doctoral work can be pursued through interdisciplinary programs in genetics, ecology, and plant physiology under the general direction of forestry staff who are members of these respective faculties.
Research is conducted at the main campus, the Dixon Springs Agricultural Center in southern Illinois (Pope County), Sinnissippi Forest in northern Illinois (Ogle County), and at other smaller outlying areas. Support is provided by the Agricultural Experiment Station and grants from industry and governmental agencies. Projects cover a wide range of subjects related to the production and utilization of wood as well as the use of forests for non-timber values. The latter includes recreation and watershed management, with special emphasis on the role of forests and forestry in water quality.
At Dixon Springs the emphasis has been on the ecology and management of pine plantations. These plantings represent plant communities that have been interjected by man into the natural succession of abandoned agricultural land to forest. Factors affecting the growth of pine, and the effects of pine on soil conditions, stand composition, and the regeneration of native hardwood species are being investigated. Watershed management studies are also concentrated at Dixon Springs.
The 2,500-acre Sinnissippi Forest, a private estate provides the department with research opportunities. A nature tail is maintained as an outdoor laboratory that is widely used by both adult and youth groups. Sinnissippi Forest emphasizes the fact that a managed forest can be aesthetically pleasing.
Public service activities are carried on through the Cooperative Extension Service and provide advice and information to landowners, youth groups, and other citizens of the State. This is accomplished largely through group meetings and demonstrations and direct replies to individual requests for information. Major emphasis has been on establishment of windbreaks on farms in the prairie region; promotion of sound management practices for farm woodlands; and the care of trees in plantations and on farmsteads. Extension education emphasizes the development of an appreciation by Illinois youth for conservation of the forest resource; the promotion among adults of sound management of rural and urban woodlands; and program for primary and secondary industries that concerns the conversion of wood into useful products.
Much of the forested land in the southern tip of Illinois is in the Shawnee National Forest. The 257,000 acres of rolling topography in the forest contain 208 different kinds of native, woody plants. Some of the areas which have a high concentration of unusual plant life have been designated Botanical Areas by the United States Forest Service. At these areas, such as Little Grand Canyon, Jackson Hollow, Stone Face, and six others, plant life is protected. These are excellent places to observe many of the woody plants of the State.
At other areas in the Shawnee National Forest, various forest management practices, such as selective timber-cutting, erosion control, and watershed protection, can be observed.
Numerous recreation facilities are dotted throughout the Shawnee. At many of these, nature trails have been developed which bring the hiker closer to nature. Descriptive brochures are available for most of the recreation areas. They may be obtained by visiting the district ranger offices at Vienna, Elizabethtown, Jonesboro, or Murphysboro, or by writing to the Forest Supervisor, Shawnee National Forest, Harrisburg, Illinois.
In 1972, the school children of Illinois selected the white oak, (Quercus alba L.), as the state tree. It is truly representative for it can be found throughout the state on a variety of sites. It grows to its largest size on upland, cool, well-drained coves, slopes, and terraces where it often reaches 100 feet of height and 3 feet of diameter.
White oak is one of Illinois’ most valuable trees. It makes an excellent shade tree of majestic beauty with a broad round head and wide spreading branches. Commercially it is an extremely valuable species used for lumber, veneer, barrels, furniture, flooring, and construction.
This species is also a part of our national heritage. In the war of 1812, sailors reported that during battle, cannon balls bounced off the hull of the U.S.S. Constitution. White oak helped make her “Old Ironsides” and a part of our history.
The Legislature has given this Division the responsibility for all activities concerning the forest and tree resource of Illinois. The Division strives to fulfill its responsibilities by:
—protecting the resource against all detrimental factors such as fire, insects and diseases, improper harvesting, etc.
—making the public aware of the importance of this resource to the state’s health and economy.
—motivating and providing technical guidance to forest and tree owners for proper management.
—practicing and demonstrating proper forest management principles on Department lands.
The main objectives of this Division are to promote and achieve on suitable public and private lands the establishment, protection, management, use, and perpetuation of our tree resource for all of the benefits which may be derived from them.
The Division cooperates with and makes full use of federal, state, and private agency programs, efforts and monies to achieve Division objectives and benefit forestry in Illinois. Formal cooperative agreements exist with the United States Forest Service, U.S.D.A. Soil Conservation Service, Extension Service and other groups, associations and clubs active in forestry and its related fields.
The efforts of the Division are channeled through five disciplines: fire control, forest management, reforestation, marketing and utilization, and urban and community forestry. Each of these sections has technical leadership at state level plus resource specialists for field accomplishments. These five efforts intertwine very strongly at field level where all personnel carry out certain parts of these programs in designated geographic areas.
The Division of Forestry is cooperating with the American Forestry Association in an attempt to find the biggest trees of each kind in the United States and/or in Illinois. If you know of a tree that you think might qualify, send the following information to the State Forester’s office in Springfield: species, trunk circumference in inches (measured 4½ feet above the ground); total tree height in feet; and, average width of crown in feet. If your candidate appears to be a winner, a state forester will be sent to determine the exact measurements. If it is a winner your name, the kind of tree and its dimension will be placed on our list. You will receive a certificate stating that you have found a “Big Tree Champion.”
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