Click to Download Arboretum Walk Tree List for all areas

Arboretum walks for each elementary school and downtown district are below.

The Glen Ellyn Arboretum Walk

How many GE trees can you find?

An arboretum is a living museum, botanical garden, or designated outdoor space where a collection of trees, shrubs, and woody plants are cultivated for scientific study, conservation, education, and public display. To be a level 1 arboretum, we need to identify at least 25 different trees. The Glen Ellyn Environmental Commission with the help of Glen Ellyn Village Forester Max Brown, has done just that. But we have not just identified 25 trees, we have identified 225!

Each tree is identified with it’s common name as well as its scientific one. This is a requirement if we want to consider this an arboretum! We have identified 35 different genus* and 67 different species*‍. All 67 are in the list you can download at the button above (for the full list across town) or below per area.

Look for the Glen Ellyn Arboretum Walk signs located at parkway trees surrounding our elementary schools and downtown. Download our form, take a walk, and see how many trees you can find! Post on social media and tag Go Green Glen Ellyn on Instagram or Facebook and we will publish your pics! You can also email them to info@gogreenglenellyn.org.

Use these checklists and participate in citizen science as you identify species in each Arboretum!

Click on the name for the individual map. Note: As of 10/29, not all walks are complete but we are adding more trees every day!

The location below is where the trail begins!

Downtown Glen Ellyn
Main & Anthony

Abraham Lincoln School
Greenfield & Hillcrest

Ben Franklin School
School Entrance

Churchill School
Saddlewood Drive 

Forest Glen School
School Entrance

Park View School
Williamsburgh Road at Park Blvd

Helpful definitions:

  • A genus is a broad biological group that contains one or more closely related tree species.

  • A species is the basic, specific unit of classification that identifies one exact kind of tree.

  • The scientific name of a tree is composed of two parts:

    1. The genus which is the he first word, which represents a group of closely related trees. It is always capitalized and italicized and often in Latin, a language often used in scientific identification.

    2. The specific epithet is the second word which identifies the exact individual species within that group.

    3. For example, the Red Maple’s scientific name is Acer (genus) rubrum (specific species)

  • "Trees are poems that the earth writes upon the sky."

    -- Kahil GIbran

  • "“We observed immediate efficiency improvements after the implementation plan was executed precisely as outlined.”"

    -- Valued Client

  • "“Clear communication and rigorous analysis distinguished the team from prior vendors we engaged.”"

    -- Procurement Lead