his innovation and conservation. He is the recipient of numerous awards for environmental stewardship, cattle quality and wildlife management. The ranch depends on nature—not pesticides—for biological control. “We have a plentiful supply of artesian water,” says Bud. “We put the surplus into reservoirs for irrigation when it gets dry. The water is filled with fish. The fish eat the mosquito larvae. Eagles, hawks and bobcats control the ranch rodents and snakes.” The Adams family also owns and operates ranchland in Okeechobee, Osceola and Madison counties, as well as in Georgia. The 10,000-cow herd produces feeder steers, replacement heifers and breeding bulls. First Cows and First Cowboys Florida enjoys a rich history of cattle ranching. Operations such as Adams Ranch make the Sunshine State a leader in cattle production. Florida cattle ranches are primarily cow-calf operations in which a permanent herd is maintained to produce calves typically sold at weaning and shipped to other states, where they are fattened on grain and eventually harvested. The 300,000-acre Deseret Ranch, located in Kissimmee and owned by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, produces more calves than any other ranch in the United States. The Seminole Tribe also is a leader in Florida’s cattle industry, consistently ranking as one of the top cow/calf operations. According to the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Florida beef producers own more than 1.5 million cows, heifers and bulls. The state ranks 12th nationally in the number of beef cows. Florida’s dairy farmers own an estimated 140,000 head of cattle from which milk and other dairy products are produced. Okeechobee County has the highest density of cattle in Florida. Florida’s history of cattle ranching dates back five centuries, giving the state the distinction of having the first cows and first cowboys in what is now the United States. Spanish explorer Juan Ponce de Leon introduced cattle to North America in 1521. He unloaded long-horned Andalusians at Charlotte Harbor on Florida’s west coast. Spanish settlers began raising cattle and operated the first ranches in the 1600s. By 1700, settlers established numerous ranches along the St. Johns River and the Florida Panhandle. Most raised the cattle for their beef. Pioneer settlers in search of new pastures slowly moved south, setting up ranches throughout the Kissimmee Valley and near Lake Okeechobee. Seminoles also began accumulating and maintaining large numbers of cattle. By the mid-1800s, ranchers were running large herds on the extensive open range in Central and South Florida. Laws passed in 1949 ended open range grazing. Those laws were initiated by then-Gov. Fuller Warren, who ran on the ticket, “I’ll get the cows off the road.”
Alto “Bud” Adams Jr. sits on the deck of the guesthouse at his fourth-generation ranch. In the late 1940s, Bud crossed Hereford bulls with Brahman cows, establishing the foundation herd for all registered Braford cattle, opposite page.
A cowboy at an open range roundup near Fort McCoy in the early 19th century. The photo is part of a traveling display. See that story on page 14. march 2012
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