Five Illinois State Champion Trees Confirmed Through NLI Program

Photo credit Kim Johnsen

Five Illinois State Champion trees have been confirmed through the Natural Land Institute’s (NLI) Legacy Tree Program, launched in January 2024 to recognize and document significant trees across the organization’s 12-county service area.

The program highlights one nominated tree each month and maintains a registry tracking species and size. Trees are selected for their noteworthy size, along with natural, historical or cultural significance.

Photo credit Kim Johnsen

During the past two years, numerous significant-sized trees were discovered through the Legacy Tree Program as possibly being the largest of their kind. NLI nominated them to the Illinois Big Tree Register, and in November 2025, Justin Vozzo, an extension specialist in forestry at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, visited Rockford and traveled with NLI representatives to measure the nominated trees. 

Photo credit Kim Johnsen

 Vozzo confirmed five of them as Illinois State Champion trees. Three more are pending re-measuring of the current state champion for that species. Four of the five confirmed champions have already been recognized as monthly Legacy Trees, with the fifth scheduled for recognition later this year.

Photo credit Kim Johnsen

“Champion trees have really good genetics,” says Alan Branhagen, NLI’s executive director and founder of the Legacy Tree Program. “Because they have withstood the test of time, prevailing through drought, storms, flooding and disease, they are survivors. We are identifying trees for the future. A large tree stores more carbon than a smaller one. We plan to propagate the Legacy trees, and they will likely offer climate resilience.”

For more information or to submit a nomination, visit NaturalLand.org/nlis-legacy-tree-program-january.