The Morton Arboretum

Lisle, Illinois – October 01, 2026 -- The Morton Arboretum's holiday lights exhibition Illumination opens for its 14th season on Saturday, Nov. 14, 2026, and runs through Saturday, Jan. 2, 2027, adding four new large-scale installations and a model train experience called Pine Whistle Railroad.

Tickets went on sale to Arboretum members on Oct. 1 at 9 a.m. CT and open to the general public Oct. 15 at 9 a.m. CT through mortonarb.org/illumination.

Lisle, Ill. – September 22, 2026 -- Scientists at The Morton Arboretum are tracking how a strengthening El Niño could push back peak fall foliage across the Chicago region this year, potentially compressing the color season into a shorter, more intense stretch in late autumn.

Summer weather extremes are already scrambling normal leaf-color timing

Christy Rollinson, Ph.D., senior scientist in forest ecology at the Arboretum, said this summer's swing from drought to heavy rainfall will affect trees unevenly across the region. Early-season drought typically triggers earlier fall color, and some early turners like the autumn blaze maple have already begun changing in late August and early September, particularly in high-stress spots like parking lots. But the Illinois State Climatology Office recorded significantly above-average precipitation over the last 90 days, offsetting that early drought stress.