Volunteer Habitat Restoration Projects

 
Habitat cleanup and restoration efforts continue in the LoPiano Habitat and Tempe Town Lake project areas. Community volunteers have become an essential part of keeping our habitat areas healthy. From the initial planting by over 2,000 volunteers, to Earth Day clean-up and planting festivities, and to frequent volunteer days by Eagle Scout, school and business volunteer groups, the LoPiano Habitat is a thriving and attractive desert oasis.

In spring of 2002, groups would volunteer monthly and this resulted in the re-establishment of rock-lined foot trails, construction of small rest areas, thinning of Mesquite trees and removal of invasive plant species. Even with an intensely dry spring, the Bosque habitat has experienced an incredible vegetation bloom and increase in wildlife from this work.
Photo courtesy of East Valley Tribune
 
For information about volunteering click on Town Lake Adopt-The-Lake program or call Rio Salado Operations Center at (480) 350-8625.
 

Desert Botanical Garden Horticulture Class
In January 2001, the City of Tempe, Parks Maintenance Division and the Desert Botanical Garden’s Desert Landscaper School (DLS) formed a very unique partnership by creating on-going curriculum for pruning trees around the habitat restoration projects. The City of Tempe has large areas of desert with many varieties of Mesquite, Palo Verde, Cottonwoods and other Xeriscape vegetation that needed pruning.

The two organizations developed a partnership to fulfill both their respective needs. The first year, the DLS students pruned along the Red Mountain (SR 202) freeway. In 2002 the students had the privilege to prune the LoPiano Habitat and Papago Park area. Six classes of approximately 21 students pruned the area for two weeks. The students were very excited about improving this area for walkers, hikers, bikers and horseback riders. During this same period, the students added the "Grove of Trees" to their list of pruning classes.

The exercises proved beneficial to the students and the City of Tempe. The Desert Landscaper School and City of Tempe Parks Maintenance look forward to continuing this public-private partnership with upcoming classes.