Tag Archives: Madroño Ranch
FREE RANGE: FOOD, NATURE, PLACE, AND MORE
Tragic waste: some thoughts on the s-word
Michael Pollan notes in The Omnivore’s Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Mealsthat industrial agriculture has taken an elegant solution—crops feed animals, whose manure in turn fertilizes crops—and “divide[d] it into two new problems: a fertility problem on the farm… … Continue reading
Posted in Nature
Tagged agribusiness, bat guano, chickens, Lent, Madroño Ranch, manure, Michael Pollan, Nuclear Boy, Wendell Berry
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Bloody hands: bison harvest at Madroño Ranch
The very first fruits (though “fruits” hardly seems the right word) of our very first bison harvest are ready to sell, but getting to this point has been a long and sometimes frustrating process. The last stages of that process … Continue reading
A new year at Madroño Ranch: bison harvests, chicken tractors, hog schools, and more
Happy new year! The beginning of the year is always a good time to take stock, so we thought it might be appropriate to look back at what we accomplished—and, erm, failed to accomplish—during the last twelve months. Much remains … Continue reading
Posted in Place
Tagged bison, Boggy Creek Farm, chickens, Dai Due, deer, hunting, Madroño Ranch, visual arts, writing
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Meat and unmediated experience: Deer School at Madroño Ranch
At lunch the other day, a friend opined that too much of what we all think and see and hear—and, yes, eat—passes through various filters (the media, agribusiness) before it reaches us; even our air is conditioned, he added, though … Continue reading
Posted in Food
Tagged Dai Due, deer, Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall, hunting, Madroño Ranch, meat
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Hosts, guests, and strangers: thoughts on hospitality
The season of hospitality is upon us, with all its pleasures and burdens. Known in the Christian tradition as Advent, it focuses on the need for preparation, both for the very intimate event of a baby’s birth and for the … Continue reading
Posted in More
Tagged Advent, Dai Due, deer, hospitality, land ownership, Madroño Ranch, private property, Texas Hill Country
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“Sit. Stay. Stay! I said STAY, dammit!”
Despite the temptation to give myself over to ululations for the natural world in light of the recent midterm elections, I will be brave and strong. In fact, I’ll look to our dogs for clues about how to move ahead … Continue reading
Posted in More
Tagged aoudad, armadillos, bison, Colorado, dogs, Madroño Ranch, porcupines, walking
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Lessons from Phoebe
It’s impossible to think about Madroño Ranch without thinking about its critters, both wild and domestic: bison, feral hogs, chickens, wild turkeys, aoudad, deer, geese, snakes, raccoons, porcupines, fish, and dogs. On some days at Madroño, when the wind is … Continue reading
Posted in More
Tagged aoudad, dogs, Julia Child, Kinky Friedman, Madroño Ranch, Utopia Animal Rescue Ranch
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“A cup of tea, a warm bath, and a brisk walk”
A path is little more than a habit that comes with knowledge of a place. (Wendell Berry) If you are ready to leave father and mother, and brother and sister, and wife and child and friends, and never see them … Continue reading
Posted in Place
Tagged dogs, Henry David Thoreau, Madroño Ranch, Roaring Fork River, snakes, Texas Hill Country, walking, Wendell Berry
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Adventures in Business-Land
This week, during a solo trip to Madroño, Heather spent much of her time knocking on doors in Kerrville, Bandera, Medina, Tarpley, and vicinity, hoping to convince chefs and restaurateurs to buy locally raised, grass-fed bison meat from the ranch. … Continue reading
Posted in More
Tagged agribusiness, Austin, bison, farming, Madroño Ranch, meat, Texas Hill Country, Thunder Heart Bison
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