Santa Fe Ranch Dedication Set For Sept. 25

Date:  Sept. 19,
Editor: D'Lyn Ford  (505) 646-6528, dlford@nmsu.edu

LAS CRUCES - A dedication will be held to mark the transfer of 18,000 acres of land from the Santa Fe Ranch to New Mexico State University on Sept. 25.

In May, Eloy and Suzanne Garcia, owners of the Santa Fe Ranch, donated the land to ensure it would be well taken care of now and in the future. The donation included a federal permit on 17,820 acres, 640 acres of state land and 25 acres of deeded land.

Demonstrations that show research in rangeland management have already been put in place, said John Fowler, Range Improvement Task Force coordinator with NMSU's Cooperative Extension Service. The land, which stretches from Las Campanas north to the Rio Grande, will be used by NMSU's College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences to demonstrate woodland, wildlife and grazing management projects.

An NMSU Board of Regents representative will be on hand at the ranch to officially accept the donation at 5 p.m. Sept. 25.

Speakers will include Walter Bradley, state lieutenant governor; William Conroy, NMSU president; John Owens, NMSU interim executive vice president; and Jerry Schickedanz, College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences interim dean.

The ranch is a significant donation because of its proximity to Santa Fe, Fowler said. The city is surrounded by federal land used for recreation and wildlife.

"We want to enhance people's experience," he said. "Citizens are all exposed to the ranch in some way. They get their water from an area next to the ranch. This is an opportunity for them to get directly involved in education management."

Demonstrations are being set up along the road so people can drive by, Fowler said. In one demonstration, researchers are removing juniper trees to show positive effects of long-term management.

Without management, junipers move in and crowd out other trees, such as pinon nuts and Christmas trees, he said. The area becomes a sterile environment, and trees are more vulnerable to disease and insects.

"We want to improve the area -- take the best of the woodland and do some thinning," Fowler said. "We also want to get ideas from the people, find out what they want to see in terms of landscape."