La Sal del Rey planting effort postponed

HARLINGEN — An effort to restore native habitat to 17 acres of the La Sal del Rey federal wildlife area in Hidalgo County has been postponed due to weather, organizers said yesterday.

Volunteers gather annually to plant native trees, shrubs and herbaceous plants in an effort to restore native habitat.

This year’s fall kickoff was to be at La Sal del Rey, known for its salt lakes, on Saturday.

“The event will be held on Saturday, Oct. 28, from 8 a.m. to noon at the same location,” Laura Maxwell, acting executive director of Valley Proud Environmental Council, said yesterday via email.

Sponsoring the volunteer effort are the Valley Proud Environmental Council, Friends of the Wildlife Corridor and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

The collaborative effort is known as Rio Reforestation, and this year volunteers will plant 10,200 trees and plants consisting of 32 species at the federal wildlife refuge site.

The Rio Reforestation effort this year marks the 26th year of the project.

Maxwell has said previously that 730 total acres of native habitat have been restored, with 300,000 trees and shrubs planted.

The overall goal of the planting project is to restore habitat to create corridors between the national wildlife refuges in the Valley — Laguna Atascosa, Santa Ana and the Lower Rio Grande Valley.

Together, they comprise 180,000 acres of habitat for native flora and fauna.

Volunteers are needed, event organizers say, and they can show up at 8 a.m. to work for four hours until the planting is finished on Oct. 28.

If a large group of volunteers is ready to head for the site, Valley Proud’s Maxwell urges them to contact her organization before planting day to coordinate.