University News

WIU to Celebrate Arbor Day April 28

April 25, 2023

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MACOMB, IL - - Western Illinois University will celebrate Arbor Day 2023 at 2 p.m. Friday, April 28 on the front lawn of Sherman Hall. A Heritage River Birch, or "Betula Nigra," will be planted to commemorate the day. All students, staff and faculty are welcome to attend.

WIU President Guiyou Huang will kick off the event by reading an Arbor Day proclamation. WIU has been named a Tree Campus USA by the Arbor Day Foundation for 11 consecutive years. Students from the WIU School of Agriculture, the WIU Facilities Department and the University's Forestry Club will plant this year's tree together. There will also be a small presentation from Forestry Club members on the importance of this event.

In addition to Arbor Day, each spring and fall, Forestry Instructor Paul Blome and WIU Urban forestry Management students lead tree plantings with elementary schools in western Illinois, a tradition that was started in 1993 by WIU Forestry Professor Tom Green. Volunteers from We Care plant trees and/or mulch is added around existing trees, and two trees are planted on WIU's Macomb campus to honor WIU employees and students who have passed away.

"Tree planting is an act of hope for the future as the trees will often outlast us and provide more beauty and clean air for our community now and in ages to come," said Blome.

A complete WIU tree inventory can be found at gis.wiu.edu/js/wiutrees/.

Posted By: University Communications (U-Communications@wiu.edu)
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