Thank you to Bombas for sponsoring this video! Head to bombas.com/dustups and use code dustups20 at checkout for 20% off your first purchase.

I see a lot of people saying, “don’t waste time going to Australia.” I’m of another opinion, that taking a week to see what’s been done and successful in another place, would not be a waste of time. I believe it would also provide you with rest, inspiration, and insight. This points to another important element of the Dustups project, making sure you remain resilient. Ultimately, I think letting the comments decide whether you go or not is the wrong measure. Go if you want to. Even though we are here to participate as viewers and support your efforts, our perspective is tilted by our own self interest. We all want to see progress on Dustups, but that shouldn’t be at the expense of your wellbeing. If you need a trip to Oz, take the time to do it. It would also help your viewers visualize the potential of what Dustups can be.

My vote is don't waste time going to Australia. Spend all your time working on your project. You now have expert help, use it and your time wisely.

You said in the beginning of your project you'll FALL FORWARD this mistakes is part of the reason why we like your show.

Have you thought about approaching manufacturers/processors who create masses of biodegradable waste eg fruit and vegetable juicers, canners, furniture makers etc and get them to divert it to your property? I remember reading a case study about tons and tons of orange peels being dumped in a wasteland which after a number of years created its own biodiversity forest.

You didn’t mess up, you’ve taught us all a valuable lesson. Thank you. Thank you all.

It's not frog plagues in Australia. We love our frogs. It's the crane toad plagues. They are an invasive species and are terrible for our lands.

I like the voice-over narration describing the scene so much more than your live chats with the camera when you're suffering heat stroke and can't talk straight.

We'd love to have you in Australia, but frankly, zoom calls and the exchange of documentation/video could teach you almost as much as a visit could. What you need now is more manpower to get as much of these "beginning steps" done as you can, as fast as you can.

Lightning Ridge sounds like a great idea. Long way to go though. A video meeting would also make for some interesting narrative.

If theres cows grazing, a long fence has got to be your first priority.

"bathtubs" have been used for thousands of years in the canary islands and you're supposed to plant stuff at the BOTTOM of the bath, not around it! The idea is that moisture collects at night and seeps inwards, feeding the plants.

In contracting, we use gravel to make french drains, because gravel doesn't hold water. Everytime i see you plant a prickly pear in gravel, It concerns me a little =) Have you considered using a sifter/sieve to grade the gravel into fine, medium, and large aggregate? (Just for the bathtubs) If you dug a bathtub, and then coated it with fines, then added a small layer of mediums on top to protect the fines from the sun, and then used the large around the perimeter to help keep the inside shaded a bit, it might help with water retention, as well as give the plants some material that is easier to hold on to... It would probably be way easier to stand the prickly pear in the soil, after grading that way too. Just make a frame out of 2x4, and staple some fine mesh to one frame, and some chickenwire (maybe 2 layers to make it finer) to the other frame. attach a back leg to the top, so that it stands on a 45 degree angle and throw your dirt through. Just my 2 cents. Best of luck!

How about a youtube meetup? If you have ~100 people come to the farm camping for a weekend, you can bring in a ton of biomass, "fertilizer", supplies, and labor. 100 people each planting 5-10 bathtubs in a weekend would quickly build out the entire farm. People will also have resources, like trailers for transporting supplies, etc, if you can bring a few trailers full of pallets, you can build decomposable wind breaks, stuffing them with grass next to bathtubs to reduce evaporation, act as sponges, and collect condensation. There are volcanic islands that get almost 100% of their irrigation water from condensation. Building enough windbreaks can change the local climate to bring the biome closer to semi arid from desert. This is where the speed of growth will really accelerate. China has done something similar in the desert, where they build wind breaks in rows out of sticks and straw. which also stops nutrients from being blown away by the wind.

I don't know the economy of a KZfaq-video with a lot of views, but to me a trip to Australia seems like a waste of money. I'm voting for you to put the money into bringing in loads of biomass instead. Partner with Del Monte or some other big fruit company and have them dump their peelings on/near your land for free. :) I bet some of them have large costs for getting rid of them some other way.

Also, I'd like to see you visit the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Research Center near Austin Texas to get their insights into best methods for establishing Trans-Pecos native grass and wildflower fields, once you have the cattle exclusion fences built.

I messed up our first time moving to our high desert land. Rabbits, squirrels, rats, chipmunks and other rodents ate all our cactus, plants, and trees to the ground. Plus, prickly pear cactus needs lots of water 💧

Flying to Australia to gain experience is same like cutting cactuses and transporting them, instead just planting them on spot. I would take money cost of flighticket and spend for planting, or bringing some organic matter, shadecloth etc. But flying to australia may get more views.

Another great episode and appreciate, once again, the on-camera learning. As to the question of whether to go to Lightning Ridge for an episode, if Thiago thinks you'll learn things there that you can't otherwise (or that the inspirational nature of the visit will be invaluable), then I vote yes. If, however, he thinks you've got what you need for now in terms of knowledge for taking the next steps, then I see no urgency to go. You've got your hands full and seem well-inspired as is. Thank you, Shaun and Thiago, Brandon, and everyone else!

This labor-intensive bathtub planting looks like a task for volunteers, 1-2 bathtubs/day, using your new techniques. You can chop the cactus and ocotillo, harvest the grass clumps to divide, then let others take over on the time-intensive planting part. Bring a few batches of mulch up from the river, and have the volunteers distribute it with a wheelbarrow.

Hi Shaun , Opal mining in Australia is done underground it is a method called drive method where you drive a shaft into the earth and then split off underground into new seams. Strip method or open cut is used for Coal , Gold and other ore bodies which are easily accessible from the surface. But your facts about the trees in Australia is correct and another is allot of our species of trees are actually designed to germinate once the fires have gone through.

These bath tubs needs to be viewed as micro-habitats (Homes) for microbes, bugs, mice, birds, lizards, Rabbits etc. Throw some mesquite and palo verde seeds in the bathtubs for the mulch factory, the rain will bury the seeds. Keep up the great work, Saludos from Southern Arizona. @dustuptexas

I live in a fairly wet climate (New Hampshire) but many of your concepts still apply. I'm trying to control too much water, you're trying to save too little. but the earthworks are similar. The plants are totally different, but the ideas still apply. Keep trying new things!

Glad you have expert help! I think the dirt bathtubs will be a successful experiment, over time. Looking forward to learning more, and I have high hopes for future BDAs and check dams. This is a lot term project, the first 4 years will have slow progress. I spent 20 years turning my rag weed-only former agricultural land into a wonderful lush pasture. As soon as I got a manure spreader, a scoop of seed on top of a load, with a bit of wood ashes did the trick for me. However, Kentucky gets a lot more rain than your desert. Now I mow grass, not weeds, and my animals can graze year round.

I think the project would be best served with fencing. A small acre fencing project would be well worth a test. Maybe there are nearby lots that are fenced but not grazed, a tour of those lots would give insight into what results would be gained from fencing. I own a piece of land that is not grazed and when I compare it to the piece next door that is grazed the difference is stark. The piece that is grazed has a dozen different species of plants, my piece has hundreds of species. Good luck! I enjoy watching.

Coming from someone who has a background in Horticulture and years experience of growing cacti; It could be beneficial for you to have a centralised propagation station, close to water and where you can observe all plants at one time; In the case of these cacti, it will take longer for them to establish roots as they are still photosynthesising (i understand that you are trying to minimise the sunlight on the plant, but it can be done more efficiently). If you could bring a trailer load of soil and disperse in those bath's, it will act as a sponge and absorb the water, allowing it to seep into the ground as well - micro-organisms will also be able to breed more effectively, which ultimately give life to plant and soil - i would recommend setting up some shade barriers partially around those baths with soil and plants, as it will cool the soil, block the plants from the sun so they can prioritise their energy towards developing roots and not growing. Hope this helps or brings inspiration to your project!! Sending love from AUSTRALIA 🇦🇺🦘🫡❤️

My vote is stay in TX. If it’s a matter of funding, pay the guys to continue to come back to dust ups and train you / work hands on in this project. Their direction at the early stage of this seems like a big bonus. Also, if you’re speaking with Thiago, tell him to write a book! I’m trying to learn more about syntropic agroforestry and it’s proven extremely difficult to find a solid resource.

I would love to see a video of you visiting Lightning Ridge and showing how Dustups may look in a few years, but it might be better to do that when you can't do much at Dustups for whatever reason.

Hi there, I am in the process of doing Syntropic Agroforestry on my 20-acre farm in semi-arid North Central Victoria, Australia (about 10 miles from the Mallee), using Opuntia ficus indica, Agave americana, Aeonium arboreum and other assorted cacti and succulents. Your place makes my place look positively lush and fertile! I have a 100-foot-tall eucalyptus canopy, with 6 species of Eucalyptus, about 3 or 4 species of acacia, casuarinas and also grasses, but I am using the Opuntias and Agaves as the alleyway species to push this system into more fertility and productivity. Rains so far this year have been very poor and the soil is still like concrete, although it's now after Midwinter. I have been cutting large branches of O. ficus indica (3 or 4 feet tall) off my existing plants, prioritising cuttings off cacti that fruit well and burying them a foot or more into the soil (hacking out the holes, one by one, with my spade). They root within a month of either a rainfall event or being watered and I sometimes pile rocks around the newly establishing cacti as well, to help stabilise them while they are establishing. Experience has taught me that planting whole branches in this way establishes a new opuntia hedge within just a year, as opposed to 3 to 4 years from planting pads. So maybe of you plant branches as well, you'd get even more prickly pear growth, in a shorter time? I also plant succulent or cactus understorey or companion plants such as crassula, aloe, yucca elephantipes, lampranthus (pigface or ice plant), tree aeoniums etc in the same hole, although I have learned that tree aeoniums and other "non thornies" often get chewed out by grey kangaroos and especially swamp wallabies, when planted on range. They eat the succulent stems, rather than the rosettes at the top, so perhaps they are looking for water? There is a dam nearby though, and the tree aeoniums do taste nice, I often chop the rosettes into a soup and eat them myself! BTW, I think that Lightning Ridge is a great idea. I'm closely following the progress of that project online and if you come to Aussie, you'd be welcome to visit my place as well! I've put a few KZfaq videos of my work online, although (like I said) low rainfall this year is making it look a bit drier than it was when those films were taken! Oh well, it will rain again... Eventually... One Day... God Bless Your Work.

You can put some meshes between 2 poles to catch the dew, which is something I saw people doing in those ultra arid areas. Water droplets form and you can collect water or direct it into those dirt tubs.

Shaun, I think you could learn much more by focusing on groups that specialize on the Chihuahuan Desert. The Chihuahuan Desert Institute & Botanical Garden up in Fort Davis comes to mind. You might also find a rare rancher that’s doing some grassland management techniques. And finally, the Nature Conservancy with Mount Livermore or Big Bend Ranch State Park might have information on new species that are rare but something missing on your ranch. From David in Houston

5:30 I say go to Lightening Ridge in Australia and also to Geoff Lawton’s place, Zaytuna, because you can learn so much from seeing what others have done. and hearing in person their challenges and solutions. Geoff has been a huge part of turning land from barren to lush in various parts of the world, including the Jordan place where it was basically all hard packed ground with nothing growing, and in Arabia or one of those very dry lands. Your kind mentor who came over to help you, would also be able to explain with examples the process of his regenerating life on that barren land. You’ll never regret it snd it would be really interesting to see what your place can look like years ahead and learn about the journey they used to get there.

Don't go. You already have the expert. Just work on your own footrest.

In México it is suggested to dry cactus leaf for a week , that way it roots faster once put in the ground

Lighting ridge is exactly the project you would benefit from seeing when you have time maybe when you get flooding or extreme heat times might be a good time to go ✌️👏

Thanks Shaun - so glad to see you not getting discouraged and always still foraging ahead with the learning curve, etc! You're doing awesome!

Adding biomass and cactus to all those bathtubs will take time and effort, but if you bring some biomass such as grass clipings, char, straw, mulch, twigs , maybe even cardboard when you drive to Dustups every week from home, your bathtub project could accelerate.

If its possible lighting ridge would be great content. I love hearing from these experts in the wild doing what they do best. Also i just cannot wait for more rain!

😁 I say the same thing way back in the beginning when the tubs were installed, but Thiago gets the credit because he's famous. Ouch!! 😁 Mulch in the tubs will pay dividends in very short order. While I'm a huge supporter of using that grass to cover the soil, I'd like to see a second "test bed" done with a bag of wood chip mulch. I'm thinking that the wood chips will do better because they are denser and form a heavy mat that shades the soil more. If you look at the grass when it's laid down, you can see it's still very puffy and there's good air flow through the mass. While it's undoubtedly shading the soil, I think the air movement is also allowing the soil to dry out far faster than if wood chips were used. Just an experiment, obviously. We know the wood chips work wonders because Edge of Nowhere Farms in Phoenix has already demonstrated it on a large scale. Bringing in bags of the stuff every time you visit wouldn't be cost-effective, obviously, but it would be fun to follow Peter Andrews' idea of really building up a line of the tubs at the top of the elevation so that all that biological goodness can then flow downhill from there.

It's so nice to see you learn things and implement tried and proven strategies. After digging the tubs and the terraces, it finally seems like you're making good, usable progress that goes beyond the initial phase of trial and error. That is, concrete, usable progress. Very happy to see it. Thank you for sharing all of this.

Have you thought about collecting heaps of the cactus mince them up in a cement mixer and use the slurry as a soil wetting agent and soil builder? Pore the slurry to fill 1/3 of the dirt bathtub and fill it over 1/3 with dirt and plant straight into it ad that will be your sponge you need to build your organic matter

Yes- go visit Australia and take notes. Also meet with several groups that are reclaiming desert. Stay a few weeks. Also Hawaii is exactly half way. So you can split the trip in 2 parts and have more fun. You also cut the trip in half! It is not out of the way to buy 2 tickets. travel zoo is good and vacations to go. We use both for good deals. Keep up the good work !!

How many yards of fence can you build for the cost of an Australia trip?

This is a VERY special and important episode! i hope this video (and potentially the next few videos) are categorized into a special list for years to come!

Shaun, Indio Mountains research station (UTEP) says on their website that they have documented 334 plant species in the area! That’s almost unbelievable but encouraging to think you have so many native choices in your tool kit! Have you told us how many species you have counted on your ranch? I’m sure their number is higher if they also take into account the higher elevations of Eagle Peak. Rains again (6/25/24) dancing around Van Horn and Sierra Blanca today. Hopeful you get a direct hit! 👍😎David inHouston,Texas

If you went to Australia for a video, I'd still watch it just saying man. I can't always watch 100% of your videos because I'm usually doing household chores while I watch, but wherever I miss something I always rewind

Thanks Shaun. The learning curve is always taking place. I can share our new knowledge. We planted thousands of wildflowers here in North Texas and most did not grow. We did all the right things. However we learned that Zinnas and Morning Glories are very successful and they thrive here !!! Easy to grow. Also if you plant a garden at your home, not in the desert, the 3 easiest veggies to grow are cucumbers, squash and zucchini ! Plant them in dried cowmanure - Lowes, and give them full sun and plenty of water and they will produce tons !! Kids love to learn about gardening. Almost nothing will grow in Texas after late July so that is the cutoff date. Keep up the great work !!

I would agree with focusing on one spot to really add a lot of organic material and setup an "ideal" scenario that's big enough to sustain it self but not so big you can't manage it or fix problems if they come up. If you spread it too thin trying to stretch resources to cover more ground you probably get more failure.

Why not build a large greenroom on your property? It retains moisture, provides protection against elements and can be used as a nursery to start up plants.

i would very much enjoy a lightning ridge episode!

You could try and build some more earthworks like those bathtubs, but on contour ie swales or something similar Then wait for a rain and as soon as it rains I’d be out there sowing native grasses (or the equivalent native seeds for your area maybe some kind of cactus) into those areas where waters collecting Then as a farmer you could use a trick to help trap the moisture and encourage germination by laying down garden fleece (at least that’s what we call it in the uk) I’d probably do a few layers of fleece to really trap the humidity You could also try and use actual tarp for about 3-4 days to totally trap the humidity but my only concern with that would be it overheating in the desert sun Obviously this isn’t feesable on a large scale but might be worth a shot to kickstart good germination in some places, even if the grass dies a month after germinating you’ll have a nice patch of mulch to shade the ground

Maybe you could incorporate some of those abundant Texas dead feral hogs to decompose on your ranch. It would attract buzzards and such and help the ecosystem.

You need to have fun with this project/obsession….go to Australia, take the fam…enjoy life !

Excited to see how tropical storm Alberto impacted your land. Rain! A lot of rain

We are all (to a wide varying degree) LD…. and it is what makes us human: Learn by Doing - LBD We appreciate and Love your adventures! Please keep plugging and padding away.

Here in the eastern US whenever there is a highway project they create an enormous amount of mulch grinding up poor quality lumber and under growth. I'm talking 10s of thousands of tons. I'd try to find access to very large volumes of high quality mulch. Fill your bathtubs and terraces with it. Create islands of life. Get some taller vegetation going more quickly and then you may start seeing results within a few years. These bathtubs may not look much different than they do now in 5 years

If you knew it was cracking - why didn't you do a running repair on it before it fully broke?

Don't go to lightning ridge I don't know what you will learn. I've been, not that I'm a reforesting expert. It's not strip mining. It small time mining. It's on a hill so it rains all around but not on the hill. There is plenty if farming going on relatively close. Where the black soil is you can't mine. The restaurant where the forest is is heavily watered. If you want to learn their lessons dig a trench to keep for water months at a time and water plants. The greenery in those videos is from I believe one of the wettest season in history. That's the year the houses got washed into Sydney's beaches and towns got wiped off the map and lightning ridge itself was an island and they had to get supplies flow in. The reforest area is really small and really dense, anything like looks like green grass is purely due to the above average rainfall of that season. No one is looking after it. That part of Australia is on the Great Artesian Basin because of that there is fairly easy access to water. People water their lawns with it. The reforest project apparently doesn't use it (its in town so they could) but they have liquid water in the pond year round. If you go to Australia ask yourself why? What are you going to learn? What can you show anyone that isn't already on KZfaq? Save your money and dig a hole to collect more water.

Please keep doing what you are doing. AFTER, you achieve more levels of success, it might make sense for you to fly to Australia to compare notes. Until then, please keep grinding like you are……one thought. Maybe do a collab with the folks behind the Australian effort to bring a larger audience to this project and create more funds for this project. Keep up the great work 👊🏻🌻👊🏻

I would love to see tours of other similar projects that you take inspiration from, as I am here for your journey of understanding, whatever that might entail! I hope that your journey inspires others, and you share in the journey of others!

I'd love for you to be the person who goes to previous projects to see which methods worked over the long hall. I want you to see al baydha along with others!

You are totally awesome. So dedicated to your task and to learning as you go. Brilliant.

Our plan to purchase land in the Big Bend area is moving forward again, finally, after several delays. I am very much looking forward to visiting Dustups Ranch in person some time after Autumn.

Thanks so much Shaun. Whatever you decide, I will definitely be along for the journey. Your goal and drive is what I think most people here appreciate. So I don't think you need to "cater" to those folk since we're here to see and support this project and your journey. Godspeed, man!

Since you have 14 inches then would it also make sens to try some other species pinus monophylla can survive at 10 inches a year, jojoba can't stay alive at as low as 6 inches of rain, I have always been thinking about the Economical side of things, jojoba oil is sought after, maybe some olives if temperatures allows it during the winter there are olive varieties that can survive quite well on 14 inches( but obviously this will be not varieties from US), maybe some almonds, or the dates , or Indian dates combine that with either conical bathtubs or just key lines to favour the rows or trees or for instance I have seen people grow grapes at 150 mm rain in big bathtubs this by Spaniards or dragon fruit etc , good luck 🤞

Wouldn’t it be better to focus time and energy on building earthworks such as bathtubs, swales, dams, overflow ponds etc Then once you’ve got more water in the system focus on planting plants, as a farmer it seems far far too dry for anything to take and kickstart the biomass process without irrigation (I’m sure it will work eventually but would be slow as hell) After all fundamentally the problem is a lack of water not a lack of biomass, you’ll get the biomass occurring with wetter conditions anyway surely? I’m from the uk and have seen areas of pure sand and rubber for horses turn to lush thick grass in about 5 years because we get so much rain

There's this tree planting tool, I don't know the name of, that looks like 2 spades connected by a hinge above the blades. Basically works like a soil spreader. Stab it into the ground, push the grips together, put your plant in between the spade blades, pull the tool out. I think, that's what you need.

To be fair about the first failure with the cactus, it was a valid plan in other climates. When you talked about your friend cutting up cactus in his yard and it all growing it was a well watered area like a lawn. I think you could nearly toss cactus nearly any where and it would grow, if you did it right before the rainy season.

Definitely come to OZ. Observing "In real life" will gather more info than virtual.

Get Thee to Australia, Young Man! That would be fabulous content, an extraordinary learning opportunity for you and all your viewers and a shot in the arm of confidence and hope for all of us. I am team Australia visit all the way!

My idea is to make hexagonal inch thick trays that connect together made out of hemp pulp and cover a large surface area with them , the trays can be seeded with whatever you want to grow and impregnated with potassium nitrate. The trays would have kind of a mesh design in the middle, this would be able to draw humid night air into the trays and preserve moisture underneath. When the trays have degraded there will be a thick layer of cellulose left behind under whatever is growing above.

I so love what you are doing! Thank you so much !! I am older generation and it is a pleasure for me to see that the next generation is doing the work to make our planet better. Thank you! Thank you!

it needs contact with soil

Rather than Austrailia, I would also like to see you visit Valer Clark Austin, a permaculturalist in Southern Arizona, who farms in a similar climate as yours. She has led the desert greening of thousands of acres since the 1980s through water conservation and holistic land management. See Cuenca Los Ojos.

i really appreciate that you're still going in a couple years we'll look back and be so happy you accomplished your goal

I would love to see you visit Australia. Especially as a source of motivation and inspiration during low points, or when you need content when things are slow. I see it as more than simply information gathering. I'm surprised so many people said no, but I think visiting a similar project that has succeeded has a lot of value.

Yes a trip to lightning Ridge is a must so people can see what you have envision for your property.

I think you should definitely take a trip and look at a successful desert forest in a very similar climate. 1. It's great content for you and for the viewers. This type of success in alternative agriculture should always be promoted! 2. I think it'd be a great vision for the viewers and for yourself about what is actually possible. Let's us see the forest through the trees.

Wow that is really nice work,,, I feel this one is going to take off, the way it is organized and how densely it is planted, it looks it is going to be great.

Hi Shaun To me, a trip to Australia is unnessesary. I much prefer to see your ranch😊

Looking forward to this Shaun!!

You don't need to go to Australia to do a learning session because there are a lot of places that you can go to that are more local like in Arizona or Mexico or other places in Texas where you can get the same learning experience. Rancho Cacachilas would be a good place to check out.

Love seeing so much done with existing resources. Very much like what "Offgrid Desert Greening" is doing.

I wonder if a Wilton Trenching shovel would work well for the type of planting you were doing with cactus. It's a very heavy shovel, so it's easy to give it a lot of momentum to embed itself. It too heavy to use for digging, but great for opening a slit. I'm on the other side of the Metroplex from you, and have one if you would like to borrow it for a week or two. I used it today to transplant some St Augustine runners into places which are a bit weedy. It's designed to easily open a slit to install underground wiring or irrigation pipe without digging a trench. It is metal, so will get hot in the desert sun.

Trap water. Do that. Make sure you are ready for the monsoons . What you are doing is recharging the local water table. As it fills, water gets closer and closer to roots. Only after you are doing that successfully, should you worry about organic matter or plants.

A setback you can bounce back from, learn and move on.

You are why this is a great effort to watch. Because you stay real, I will follow you to your success as long as that takes.

I spent some of my youth growing up in the Ridge, going back out in a few weeks, you'll love it, travelling expands the mind

How about a 24 hr. camera so we can see if its raining on property??

Shaun, my thought is that we need bring back the biomass that we bing in to our mega cities which drain the surroundings and flush out in the sea. /Niklas

Great video! Would love to see more bathtubs, they seem to be a very effective and little effort longterm solution/improvement.

Australia yes… when you meet a significant goal. Make it worth it. Add several locations to your trip and produce high quality videos. Take help if you need to. Add destinations and continue learning. This channel speaks to me in many ways, but your scientific approach combined with your humility is what I’m really enjoying. Set a target. Something you know is a lot of work and on a schedule. When you reach that target (not if), take a trip, relax a little, and visit a few places that you hope bend your perspective on the ranch. Learn a new skill, volunteer, or maybe work as a laborer here and there. Two weeks min. Stay away long enough to miss it. Come back to your ranch highly motivated but don’t leave until you are fn sick of it. Hyper focus, set attainable goals, reward yourself. I hope to get to Texas one day! Thanks for the videos!!

You are learning. Its a process. As far as lightning ridge: if the trip will not only be educational for you and help you target the necessary strategy for your end goal...then yes, and if the show allows you to help get across your process to us viewers with the help of a successful forestry...then also yes. Id watch it. Note tho im also biased and have been following your adventure since the start. Keep up the good work!

I wouldn't call it a mistake. Those cactus that didn't take still created bio mass/mulch/shade. Albeit temporary, it's probably part of the reason the shrub was able to take hold. With this new system, you will have a more permanent source of that. The cattle can be a good thing if managed correctly. If they become such a huge nuisance, it might be worthwhile to fence off your most productive area for a bit. But occasionally, open it up for those cows to graze for a week or two, then let them out. If you are creative, you can make 3 or 4 large fenced off areas and literally cycle the cows through them. This would help manage the overgrazing and give you the bio mass they can produce. Cows are amazing for regenerative deserts like this if managed correctly.

I appreciate your efforts and your honesty. I vote that you check out Australia, not simply because it will be interesting to some of us, but because you will undoubtedly learn something that you hadn’t anticipated learning. Best of luck!

I do think it’s a good idea to optimize the dirt bathtubs, like you said, you already spent the time and money to make them and they do work. I believe you said you didn’t want to commit to more terraces until you saw the first one working so I think working on the bathtubs and fencing is a great use of time while you wait for the terrace to establish. It also seems like the perfect work for volunteers. As far as Lightning Ridge is concerned, I’d personally love to see you go there and make an episode, but I’m not so sure that it would be worth it because you can probably just get in touch over Zoom or something and learn a lot that way

Whaaaatttt, curious to see what happened

Great video Shawn! Used your code and got a short sleeve Bombas shirt, a must in TX. They were out of my size in the long sleeve. I’ll come back another time. Great work!

i think you should go to lightning ridge but not now. stay focused on getting just a small patch looking good on your lot so that it is visible that it can expand from that small location stay fosused on that. Once that is established i think it would be a cool part of the channel to visit lots of projects like this and collab with others doing what you are doing in the world on youtube and social media. That would be amazing to see.

After seeing those waterlogged bathtubs, My first thought was scattering ephemeral seeds of desert plants in them. They would grow rapidly taking advantage of the short term water source and provide mulch in each 'bathtub' as the water disappears. If they make it to flowering stage, seed will also be deposited in the 'bathtub'. Many ephemeral desert plant seeds have amazing longevity. This occurs in much of the arid and desert areas in Australia.