Arboretum
The Southern Illinois University Carbondale Arboretum is located in one of the most diverse regions for natural hardwood forests in the United States. Visitors are urged to explore our 1,200-acre campus landscape, which contains 5,217 living trees in our inventory including 72 genera and 155 species. Six tree identification tours have been designed to promote the Arboretum, and to protect it for future generations by building a diverse and engaged community of students, donors, volunteers and advocates.
One hundred and fifty trees were initially included in the arboretum as selections of self-guided tours to coincide with the campus's 150th anniversary celebration.
The Southern Illinois University Carbondale Arboretum was formally established as a campus arboretum through ArbNet, a global network for tree-focused arboreta, and has been an Accredited Arboretum in the Morton Register of Arboreta since 2019. Southern Illinois University Carbondale is the first university in Illinois to receive the Level II accreditation, and has been designated Tree Campus Higher Education by the Arbor Day Foundation since 2015, as one of 11 university campuses in the State of Illinois that meet the five core standards of tree care and community engagement.
Read about our mission, goals, and objectives, view our campus tree selections, explore our tree inventory map or contact us for more information.
Campus Sculpture Tour
For a complimentary tour of the campus, be sure to take a look at the University Museum's Campus Sculpture tour. These art exhibits work in tandem with the tree tours to offer several ways to enjoy the beauty and diversity of the campus grounds.
To view view a numbered map of where the sculptures are on campus, click SIUC Sculptures Map.
EcoBenefits: Total Tree Value and Savings
Total Monetary Benefit: $302,563
Benefits are calculated for all trees in the SIU tree inventory with defined species, DBH and land use based on i-Tree research. Totals are annual amounts.
Stormwater Monetary Benefit: $72,409
Monetary savings due to reductions in annual stormwater runoff due to rainfall interception by tree canopy.
Property Value Total: $164,489
Monetary increases in tangible and intangible benefits of trees reflected in increases in property values.
Energy Savings: $23,871
Monetary increases due to the contribution of the urban forest toward conserving energy in terms of reduced natural gas use in winter (measured in therms) and reduced electricity use for air conditioning in the summer.
Air Quality Monetary Benefit: $9,565
Trees improve air quality when air pollutants (O3, NO2, SO2, Particulate Matter) are deposited on tree surfaces and absorbed, and from reduced emissions from power plants (NO2, Particulate Matter, VOC’s (Volatile Organic Compounds), SO2) due to reduced electricity use (see Energy Conservation definition). This is the monetary amount of this benefit.
Carbon Monetary Benefit: $8,453
The dollar value associated with the amount of carbon stored or sequestered by trees based on calculations of the social cost of carbon.
Tree Inventory Map
Annual Events:
- Arbor Day Tree Planting, Spring Semester
- SIU Day, Spring and Fall Semesters - Visit with the forestry faculty to learn the basics of tree identification and how to utilize our unique Tree Trainer ID and Arboretum website with a select group of nearby trees. Students will learn about cane/bamboo, such as how and where it grows, and how we restore it to the landscape.
- Tree Tours, TBD