Tío Cowboy: Juan Salinas, Rodeo Roper and Horseman

1 Webb County, Texas

1 Webb County, Texas Webb County, Texas, lies on the north bank of the Rio Grande, the boundary between the United States and Mexico. The county is in deep southwest Texas, 150 miles south of San Antonio on Interstate Highway 35, and 150 miles due west from Corpus Christi. Laredo is the county seat of Webb County, which is the sixth largest county in the state of Texas and part of what many call the South Texas Brush Country. Rainfall averages about 20 inches per year, and the countryside consists of gradually sloping hills, the western terminus of the Gulf of Mexico Plains, covered with native brush 6 to 8 feet in height, and mesquite and huisache trees 10 to 20 feet in height. Nopales, prickly pears, cover a large part of the ground. White-tailed deer, feral hog, quail, and other wildlife are plentiful, and rattlesnakes abound. The record books are full of trophy white-tailed deer from Webb County, additions continue annually. Although the area is semiarid, land along the river is very fertile, being the northern rim of the Rio Grande Valley. With irrigation from the Rio Grande over the last two centuries, the fields have yielded magnificent crops of hay, onion, cabbage, carrots, watermelon , cantaloupe, and many other products. Farming has gone through an evolution that has put the small farmer out of business , but there are still many farms around the Laredo area. Produce comes to Laredo, and after undergoing processing, moves out to the produce markets of the nation. In addition, much produce from Mexico comes through Laredo. Away from the river, the soil varies from gravel hills to red sandy loam to black and gray soil. 2 Tío Cowboy Farmers, whose land does not adjoin the fertile river land, depend on rain for crops. Cattle producers too must depend on rain for the grass that provides feed for their herds. Many cattle ranchers profess that they raise grass and not cattle. In reality, without the grass, the cattle are insignificant. In dry times cattlemen put out hay that was either raised on their own ranches or purchased and brought in.Although more troublesome, a very effective alternative is to chamusLAREDO ENCINAL COTULLA Webb County Dimmit County La Salle County McMullen County Duval County Jim Hogg County Zapata County Callaghan Ranch Salinas Ranch La Becerra Las Blancas Webb and surrounding counties: the Brush Country Webb County, Texas 3 car, to burn prickly pear. Liquefied natural gas—the propane used in jet burners carried on workers’ backs in small backpack models, or 200- to 300-gallon steel tank models on small trailers—burns thorns off the nopales, the prickly pear cactus. The de-thorned, singed cactus is food for the cattle. Neither hay nor burned pear offers much protein, but these maintain the herd until the rains come and provide for grass growth. Even after good rains, it takes weeks for grass and forbs to begin growth, giving rise to the saying, “but it doesn’t rain grass.” After burning or singeing, the cactus smells like a steamed green vegetable, and the cattle and wildlife cherish it; cattle herd easily with a good burning, or chamuscada. In reality, seven or eight years out of ten are very dry, and the cattle and the operation suffer considerably. Drought and the high cost of feed bills discourage many from pursuing an otherwise beautiful and rewarding profession. In the early 1950s, rancher Arturo T. Benavides from Bruni introduced buffle grass to South Texas, forever changing the countryside . It has been marvelous for this part of the state. Before buffle grass, ranchers depended on sparse native grasses for cattle survival. Buffle grass is extremely hardy, it is full and rich, and makes excellent feed, and most importantly, it spreads like wild- fire. Improved buffle grass and other varieties have helped cattle ranchers tremendously. Just about everywhere you turn in South Texas, you see healthy stands of imported grass. Salinas family photos taken in the 1920s, 30s, and 40s show the bare earth, where either native grass stood, or no vegetation grew at all. Nine months out of the year the temperature is very hot. The temperature soars to the 100-degree Fahrenheit mark during most of the months of June, July, August, and some of September. During much of the rest of the year the temperature...