The Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago (MWRD) Restore the Canopy program offers FREE Bur, Pin, Red, and Swamp White Oak saplings.

Visit our water reclamation plants (WRPs) every Wednesday from 9 a.m. to Noon (April - October) to pick up your free saplings.

• Calumet WRP = 400 E. 130th St., Chicago

• Egan WRP = 550 S. Meacham Rd., Schaumburg

• Hanover Park WRP = 1220 Sycamore Ave., Hanover Park

• Kirie WRP = 701 Oakton St., Des Plaines

• O'Brien WRP = 3500 Howard St., Skokie

• Stickney WRP = 6001 W. Pershing Rd., Cicero

As a form of green infrastructure, a medium-sized oak tree can help prevent flooding and improve water quality by absorbing 2,800 gallons of rainfall per year.

Get your FREE oak saplings and start planting!

For bulk orders of 50 or more, call our Office of Public Affairs at (312) 751-6633 or complete this form. To download a flyer, click here.

Post a selfie with your sapling on our Instagram (mwrd_of_Greater_Chicago), Facebook, or Twitter (@mwrdgc) page using #MyMWRDtree.

Download a fact sheet for details, including growth rate, about each sapling we’re distributing this year.

For tips on planting and care instructions, along with other helpful resources – including a map showing where we’ve distributed saplings, click here.