The city agreed and leased the Jensen section to Lincoln Memorial Garden in perpetuity.

At the time of the lease, the future Garden site was cultivated farmland that contained approximately 12 trees.

Construction of the Garden was helped by donations from the family of drugstore CEO Charles Walgreen.

The Ostermeier Unit contains approximately 20 acres (0.081 km2) of Illinois tallgrass prairie under restoration.

Plantings within the Jensen Unit include the white oak (the Illinois state tree), the sugar maple, the dogwood, and the redbud.

[3] In early spring, LMG operates one of the southernmost maple syrup festivals in Illinois.