Part 69

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.

Shawnee National Forest

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.

White Oak, the State Tree of 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.

DEPARTMENT OF CONSERVATION DIVISION OF FORESTRY

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.

ILLINOIS BIG TREE CHAMPIONS

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.”

Index to Common and Scientific Names

A Acer barbatum 38 negundo 40 nigrum 42 rubrum 44-46 saccharinum 48 saccharum 50 Aesculus discolor 52 glabra 54 Ailanthus altissima 56 Alder Black 58 Alnus glutinosa 58 Amelanchier arborea 60 laevis 62 Apple Iowa Crab 182 Narrow-leaved Crab 178 Prairie Crab 180 Aralia spinosa 64 Ash Black 138 Blue 144 Green 142 Pumpkin 146 Red 140 Wafer 232 White 136 Asimina triloba 66 Aspen Large-toothed 216 Quaking 220

B Basswood 298 White 300 Beech Blue 76 Betula lutea 68 nigra 70 papyrifera 72 Birch Paper 72 River 70 Yellow 68 Box Elder 40 Broussonetia papyrifera 74 Buckeye Ohio 54 Red 52 Buckthorn 274 Carolina 272 Butternut 160

C Carpinus caroliniana 76 Carya aquatica 78 cordiformis 80 glabra 82 illinoensis 84 laciniosa 86 ovalis 88 ovata 90 texana 92 tomentosa 94 Castanea dentata 96 Catalpa 100 bignonioides 98 Common 98 speciosa 100 Cedar Red 164 Celtis laevigata 102 occidentalis 104 tenuifolia 106 Cercis canadensis 108 Cherry Wild Black 228 Choke 230 Chestnut 96 Cladrastis lutea 110 Cock-spur Thorn 120 Coffee Tree Kentucky 152 Cornus amomum 118 alternifolia 112 drummondii 114 florida 116 foemina 118 obliqua 118 racemosa 118 rugosa 118 stolonifera 118 Cottonwood 214 Swamp 218 Crab Apple Iowa 182 Narrow-leaved 178 Prairie 180 Crataegus calpodendron 126 coccinioides 126 crus-galli 120 mollis 122 pruinosa 124 puntata 128 viridis 128 Cypress Bald 296

D Diospyros virginiana 130 Dogwood Alternate-leaved 112 Flowering 116 Gray 118 Rough-leaved 114