Morton Arboretum races to save endangered oak species

LISLE, Ill. - The Morton Arboretum has sounded the alarm about a species of tree in urgent need of conservation.

Silvia Alvarez-Clare, co-author of a milestone report on the Mesoamerican oak tree, said the main threats to these trees are climate change, pests and diseases, and land use change due to agriculture and urbanization.

But Alvarez-Clare is hopeful that actions being taken now will turn things around.

"One of the things we’re doing here at the Morton Arboretum is we’re trying to bring some of these species from areas that will grow here like this Quercus graciliformis from Texas. And we’re growing them in our collections as an insurance policy against extinction," Alvarez-Clare said.

She said some people may not realize the importance of conservation.

"Every tree is different and holds all these ecological relationships supporting birds and insects and even below-ground diversity—so even losing one of those species would have really serious consequences that we don’t even know for the future of humanity, our planet, our people, and our ecology," Alvarez-Clare said.

Not to mention autumn is the perfect time to admire a huge variety of trees. Alvarez-Clare said the best time to catch the fall foliage at Morton Arboretum is in about two weeks.

Visitors can also enjoy the Glass Pumpkin Patch taking place this weekend. There will be more than 7,000 hand-blown pumpkins for sale as well as meet-and-greets with the artists.