Southern Illinois University Carbondale will celebrate Arbor Day and Earth Month with a public tree planting from 9-11 a.m. on April 22. Photo provided
April 06, 2026
Everyone welcome to join SIU’s April 22 tree planting
CARBONDALE, Ill. — Southern Illinois University Carbondale continues its traditional celebration of Arbor Day and Earth Month with its annual tree planting event.
This year, it’s happening from 9 to 11 a.m. on April 22, rain or shine, and everyone is welcome to join in. Participants should meet at parking lot 44, located at the corner of Lincoln Drive and Chautauqua Street. This year’s tree-planting focus is Lincoln Drive, particularly in the area around Rehn and Lawson Halls.
Dress appropriately for the activity -- closed-toe shoes and jeans are recommended, and gloves are encouraged. Planting tools will be provided.
Organizers suggest pre-registration to help them prepare supplies, but it is not required. To sign up in advance, email opie.piper@siu.edu.
Media Advisory
Reporters, photographers and news crews are welcome to cover the tree planting from 9 to 11 a.m. April 22. Meet at the corner of Lincoln Drive and Chautauqua Street. For more information, contact Opie Piper at opie.piper@siu.edu or call 618-453-8184 or Jasmine Wooley at jasmine.wooley@siu.edu or 618-453-8185.
SIU’s national accolades
SIU has earned the Arbor Day Foundation’s Tree Campus Higher Education recognition nationally each year since 2015, one of just about 400 campuses nationwide to earn the distinction.
The university’s annual spring tree planting is one of the many reasons the university continues to earn the designation. Students, faculty, staff and community volunteers have planted more than 100 trees since the initiative began over 20 years ago, ensuring SIU retains its wide biodiversity and beauty, according to Opie Piper, superintendent of grounds and chair of the Tree Campus committee. The 1,200-acre main campus boasts more than 5,200 living trees and has been designated as a level 2 accredited arboretum by the Morton Register of Arboreta through ArbNet since 2019. SIU is the first Illinois university to earn this honor.
“SIU is proud to have one of the nation’s most beautiful campuses, and the diversity and number of trees found here is one of the reasons,” Piper said. “On the main campus alone, the university has approximately 155 different species of trees. We invite the campus community and public to join us in this special project as we plant about a dozen new trees, enhancing SIU’s beauty and biodiversity.”
SIU also has a formal campus tree care plan and maintains a tree inventory map. In addition, the university offers self-guided walking tree tours and hosts Forestry Club demonstration and guided walking tours for school and other groups.
Learn more
For additional information about the tree planting or SIU’s Tree Campus Higher Education, contact Piper at opie.piper@siu.edu or 618-453-8184 or Jasmine Wooley at jasmine.wooley@siu.edu or 618-453-8185.