I had an opportunity to visit with an old Aggie friend near Devine the other day. He wanted to know what the family place was worth in today’s market. As a Broker, I cannot give an “opinion of value” as we did in the old days, but can still offer my opinion of what it […]
Book Excerpt: When to Buy Your Ranch
Section III. Timing Your Purchase and Improvements Does it make any difference when you buy your ranch, when you high fence a ranch, when you dig a new stocktank? In this section, I provide some suggestions as to when to implement your plans, either for buying or developing your new ranch. Ch. 3-1: When to […]
Another Day as a Ranch Broker
Great day previewing a solid deer/quail/dove ranch in deep South Texas.
Acclimate That Fat Retriever
Time to get yourself, and your dog, in shape for Dove season.
Chapter 2-4. Managing Whitetail Deer
Over the course of 35 years in the wildlife consulting business, I have seen management emphasis change from cow-calf operations with deer leasing as an adjunct to pure deer programs with no cows and the agricultural exemption from ad valorem taxes granted for wildlife management alone. Whitetail deer are big business in Texas, all over […]
Ch. 2-3. Managing Vegetation.
I’m sure you’ve heard it said that nothing is constant in Nature. Your piece of Nature is no exception and is constantly changing, even though day to day it may appear to be the same. Some changes are relatively rapid, such as grass growing. Others are slower, such as the filling of a pond […]
Chapter 2-2. Developing Your Water Assets.
That living chunk of dirt with all its inhabitants that you just bought, now known as “The Ranch”, can get along for a time without food, but not without water. Certainly, rainfall will replenish moisture in the soil, which takes care of the amoebas, worms and insects. Others, like Bobwhites, snakes and javelina, get by […]
Chapter 2-1: What IS a Ranch?
Now that you own a ranch, what is a ranch, what is it you own? A ranch, be it 10 acres or 10,000 acres is a living machine. It takes in moisture and sunlight and converts them into food, food for animals, insects, and plants. Such a machine is known as an ecosystem. A square […]
6,000 Acres of the Best Hunting in South Texas
I really love my job! Yesterday I had the pleasure of showing 6,000 acres of ideal quail habitat deep inside the King Ranch to a prospect. We drove for miles through great habitat that, after 30 inches of rain, has never looked better. In fact, this ranch needs only judicious grazing/burning/discing to make it the […]
An Old Farts Sojurn into Social Media
I had the pleasure of addressing a senior marketing class recently at St. Mary’s University. Subject of the class was how a “mature” businessman adjusts to social media and makes it effective in a small business. Lots of good questions from the class and suggestions for me to improve my public image. Best response of […]
