Illinois
Yard rebates in Chicago
3 programs can pay Chicago residents for yard projects: 3 run by the city, the county or the utilities and districts that serve it.
Utility programs only apply to that utility’s customers, so check who supplies your water and power.
Chicago's own programs
Run by the city or by a utility or district that serves it.
- Open
City of Chicago Free Parkway Tree Request (Our Roots Chicago)
City of Chicago Department of Streets and Sanitation, Bureau of Forestry
Free parkway tree planted by the City
- Open
MWRD Discounted Rain Barrels
Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago (MWRD)
$22.30 each including tax and delivery; $11.15 each for residents 65 and older; limit 2 per household
Cook County programs
Open to residents anywhere in the county.
- Seasonal
MWRD Restore the Canopy Free Sapling Giveaway
Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago (MWRD)
Free native saplings (per-person limit not published)
Sow is not affiliated with any of these agencies or utilities. Amounts and rules change, often at the start of a fiscal year, so confirm the details on the official page before you start a project. How we research these programs
Plan your Chicago yard project in Sow
Lay out the new planting on a photo of your yard with plants native to the area, and keep the plant list ready for the application.