Before oil, this country was a cattle-shipping hub on the Texas & Pacific — and the ranches never left.
Midland is the seat of Midland County, population around 135,000, and one of the two big hubs of the Permian Basin. The town was originally called Midway — named because the first train station sat roughly halfway between Fort Worth and El Paso — and renamed Midland in 1884.
The oil story tends to dominate the conversation, but the country around Midland has always had plenty of horse stables, boarding barns, show barns, and working cattle operations, and those folks all need hay.
Midland emerged as a cattle-shipping hub on the Texas & Pacific Railway in the early 1880s. The ranching economy came first here — by at least four decades — before oil put Midland on any national map. Wagons, pens, and rail spurs moved cattle east from the surrounding grass country long before anyone was pumping crude.
The name "Permian Basin" refers to the rock formations deep below the surface. Above them, the country was — and still is — ranch land. Horse stables, 4-H barns, boarding operations, and small-acre owners still fill out the edges of Midland County, and they need the same good hay as any other cattle country.
From our fields in Saragosa to Midland is about two hours up I-20. Ray schedules runs to Midland and Odessa together when there's enough demand between here and there — that keeps the trip efficient and keeps our hay affordable for folks out that way.
Whether you're running a boarding stable, feeding show horses, keeping a couple of horses or cattle on a small acreage, or looking for hay by the trailer load, we can set you up with premium custom alfalfa from our Saragosa fields. Multiple cuttings, mid-sized square bales, forage testing on request.
Give Ray a call or drop an email. We'll tell you what's on hand, what's coming, and when we can coordinate a Midland delivery.