Country Lifestyles
Thomas Saunders V: A Legacy of Perseverance
By Dani Blackburn
Difficult times go hand in hand with ranching. While the rewards for those who choose a life in agriculture outweigh the lows, it is still nearly impossible for one family to last generations, one after the other carrying on despite trials and tribulations as they work to leave it better for their children and those to come. The Saunders family has managed to be the exception since 1850, when the original Thomas Saunders drove cattle to the Lone Star State from Mississippi. Today, Thomas Saunders V embraces a family legacy of perseverance and strength, while also forging his own path, with his wife and two daughters by his side.
His grandfather, Thomas Saunders III, formed the Twin V Ranch and Saunders Cattle Co. in Parker County in 1934, during his time with the Fort Worth Livestock Commission. His son, Thomas Saunders IV, and his wife, Ann, would continue the cattle company on that same land and raise their three children. The oldest, and only son, Thomas Saunders V would spend his youth on the ranch.
Childhood
Things were good on the ranch as a child. His uncle, Jim Calhoun, owned the first world champion stallion in the National Cutting Horse Association in 1957 by the name of Kings Pistol, resulting in a strong line of brood mares. The ranch would sell one of those mares by the name of Pistol Lady 2 Be, whose owners bred her to Docs Hickory, resulting in Miss Silver Pistol. She would go on to win more than $500,000.
To read more pick up a copy of the June 2020 NTFR issue. To subscribe call 940-872-5922.
By Martha Crump
That old adage, “What you don’t know won’t hurt you.,” may have some basis in truth when applied to minor situations. However, when what you don’t know is presented in the form of a “Trojan Horse” and is what amounts to an incredible attempt to fleece American property rights, it becomes a different story altogether.
To put this unbelievable tale together, we need to step back to Joe Biden’s 2021 Executive Order which pledged commitment to help restore balance on public lands and waters, to create jobs, and to provide a path to align the management of America’s public lands and waters with our nation’s climate, conservation, and clean energy goals.
To read more, pick up a copy of the April issue of NTFR magazine. To subscribe by mail, call 940-872-5922.
By Lacey Vilhauer
Ingredients:
1 whole lemon, seeded and roughly chopped
2 cups sugar
2 pounds strawberries, hulled
Juice of 1 to 2 lemons
¼ cup water
Directions:
Place the chopped lemon and sugar in a food processor and pulse until combined. Transfer to a large bowl. Puree the strawberries in a food processor and add to the lemon mixture along with juice of one lemon and water. Taste and add more juice as desired.
To read more, pick up a copy of the April issue of NTFR magazine. To subscribe by mail, call 940-872-5922.
By Nicholas Waters
As winter plods along – come Spring and gopher mounds – homeowners and farmers find themselves playing a familiar song – fiddling while Rome is burning.
Let’s make a mountain out of a molehill. Those mounds on your lawn and pasture could be moles, but they’re more than likely gophers; Plains Pocket Gophers to be pragmatic – Geomys bursarius to be scientific.
These rodents dig and chew, and the damage they can do goes beyond the mounds we mow over. Iowa State University cited a study in Nebraska showing a 35 percent loss in irrigated alfalfa fields due to the presence of pocket gophers; the number jumped to 46 percent in decreased production of non-irrigated alfalfa fields.
The internet is replete with academic research from coast-to-coast on how to curtail gopher populations, or at least control them. Kansas State University – then called Kansas State Agricultural College – also published a book [Bulletin 152] in February 1908 focused exclusively on the pocket gopher.
To read more, pick up a copy of the April issue of NTFR magazine. To subscribe by mail, call 940-872-5922.
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