Stewardship for their 540-acre Rosetta Ranch fills singer, songwriter Robert Earl Keen and his family with the excitement of transformation and discovery. Located in Bandera County near Medina, Texas, the property was formerly a horse ranch that had been leased for cattle grazing. Conversion to a wildlife valuation and appropriate management strategies have produced marked improvements and a gradual return to the natural beauty of native habitat.
Dozens of species of butterflies may be found on Rosetta Ranch. Like migratory birds, Monarch butterflies journey thousands of miles each year along flyways that funnel through Texas from the northern United States and Canada into the jungles of Central Mexico and back again. In fall and again in the springtime, masses of Monarchs may be found among oak groves and hovering over hilltops as they rest and feed on the milkweed that gives them poisonous protection from predator birds and sustains them during their long journey.
The Keens wish to continue to preserve the habitat for the creatures whose presence creates “the rhythm for the most extraordinary and beautiful music on earth.”
