The start of a lengthy rehabilitation effort is underway at the Table Rock Reserve in Boise where a fire scorched 2,600 acres back in June.
The goal is to get 3,000 plants in the ground before Winter.
The city of Boise's foothills restoration specialist assigned to this project, Martha Brabec, is getting help from dozens of volunteers.
Come Spring, there will be more opportunities for volunteers to sign up once again.
On this planting day, students are at the Warm Springs Golf Course trailhead to help from South Junior High and Capital High School.
"I'm usually not out, I'm usually doing my homework," says 16-year-old Jasmine Roman, who attends school at Capital High School.
Roman is basking in the chance to get a break from the "norm" on a bright sunny day.
The rehabilitation project will be ongoing for the next five years, according to Brabec.
The first phase includes an herbicide application to kill weeds during the first part of next week, Nov. 7-9. Trail users are asked to avoid walking on any areas that are sprayed purple. While the purple herbicide is safe and the trails will remain open, it's recommended that you stay on the designated trail paths.
It also includes the act of putting native plants back in the ground so they will come back and offer food for wildlife.
"Sagebrush can live up to a 150 years, as well as bitterbrush," Brabec says. "So, we're excited about engaging the public in planting shrubs so that they can come back out in five years and see the shrubs they planted."
"I think this [experience] will help me in the future to be a better person, to help people out and make a better world," Roman concludes.
Thanks to Zoo Boise's conservation fund, the rehabilitation project received a $100,000 boost. If you didn't know, each time you go to the zoo in Boise, you're chipping in. The $1 conservation fee collected at the gate supports efforts close to home and far away.
