CrimePaysButBotanyDoesnt

Thornscrub Sanctuary Update

Added 2024-04-23 05:52:44 +0000 UTC

Well, we've looked at three properties so far. The first one, and the initial one I originally did the video about ended up being way too much money. The landowner wanted 7500 an acre for it, and I just couldn't justify it with the amount of buffel that needed to be removed (half the parcel had been root-plowed twenty years prior) and the proximity to a road. The second parcel was owned by 3 squabbling sibblings who had inherited the property from their parents and were also asking way too much money and unwilling to budge. The third property I was set to buy and the price was affordable, but when Javier and I brought some NAC guys down to offer a blessing and check out the parcel, they told us we definitely shouldn't purchase the property as it had been severely degraded and was basically a monoculture of Nopal (Opuntia engelmanii/alata/lindheimeri) and Mesquite and lacked diversity. I was bummed, but had to listen since it's not just my call. Javier basically talked to me out of it and said that we owe it to everybody who's donated to actually buy some diverse, at least SOMEWHAT intact habitat. I relented. The next day, we found a parcel of 100 acres for sale at a very reasonable price, and we went and scoped the property and found a wealth of species and diversity that has not been plowed or soured like so much of the land down here. Our project went from the goal of originally wanting to plant a massive native plant garden and restore degraded habitat to trying to protect intact thornscrub that's never been destroyed before. We have an opportunity to now protect some of the most incredible habitat that I've seen in the region since 2019.

If anybody knows any rich people who want to protect land in the peyote gardens of South Texas and wants a tax write-off through our nonprofit, please get at us. Anybody who makes a large donation would of course, be welcome to visit this special place. I realize this is an absurd pipe dream in many ways, but you never know who's out there and listening, I suppose. We surveyed this spot for five hours in the 95 degree heat (thank god it was overcast) and stepped away feeling intoxicated with the richness of the habitat we had just witnessed (along with the cool tortoise we got to meet). I hope we can make this happen. In the meantime, here's some nice photos from the other day. Thanks for the continued support. In other news, I've opened up a chatroom for people to use on the Patreon and I'll be checking it a few times a week. Post any questions, comments, info, advisories, etc. there.

ALso, I killed two more lawns this month and it felt great. The heat is coming for summer and planting won't be advisable here until November, but it felt good to create some more little parcels of habitat amongst all the destruction. The book is mostly done and we are just waiting on layout.

Joey