Wharton-Matagorda-Jackson County Properties

General Location

The majority of STLLP's land holdings are located in the three contiguous counties of Wharton, Matagorda, and Jackson (the "tri-counties"). The properties are generally located in southern Wharton County, western Matagorda County, and eastern Jackson County, at and near the point common to the three counties. The location is on the Gulf Coast Prairie, inland about 40 miles from the Gulf of Mexico, and approximately seventy-five miles southwest of the city of Houston.

Acreage and Land Use

Total STLLP surface acreage in the tri-counties is approximately 18,626 acres. The properties include tracts of various sizes grouped into several farming units. Substantially all of the property is used for agricultural purposes. Of the total, approximately 13,400 acres are cultivated cropland, and, of this, about 10,465 acres are presently equipped for irrigated rice farming. The remaining acreage includes land associated with the cropland (field roads, canals, reservoirs, drainage ditches, etc.), wooded and brush land used for grazing, land occupied by oil and gas production facilities, roads and other easements, and creeks and other natural drains.

Topography

Known as the Gulf Coast Prairie, this region of Texas is nearly level to gently sloping, with a typical fall of 2 to 5 feet per mile, and is well suited to farming and ranching. The relatively level terrain is ideal for rice irrigation. Scattered wooded parcels are located among the properties, providing cover for livestock and wildlife. Numerous natural streams and man-made ditches drain the properties.

Soils

Soil types vary from tract to tract, but soils of the Edna-Bernard Association predominate. These soils generally consist of fine sandy loam and clay loam, underlain by clay and clay loam, and are well suited for crops and pasture.

Crops

Rice, grain sorghum, cotton, corn, and soybeans are the crops most commonly grown on the STLLP tracts, and in this region. The properties are situated in the Texas "rice belt", a highly productive rice-growing area. The nearly level terrain which allows flood irrigation, combined with the sub-tropical climate of the area, and suitable soils, provide excellent conditions for rice production.

For 1998, the United States Department of Agriculture's crop base acreages for STLLP's tri-county tracts totaled 9,411 acres, broken down by crops as follows:

Rice 4,491 acres

Grain Sorghum 3,896 acres

Corn 475 acres

Cotton 485 acres

Wheat 64 acres

The properties are presently divided into 16 separate farms for operational purposes.

Improvements

There are seventeen irrigation wells on the properties, along with miles of irrigation canals and pipelines for rice irrigation. Farm improvements such as field roads and drainage ditches are present. Most of the tracts are fenced. Several of the tracts have grass airstrips for use by aerial applicators.

Water Supply

Irrigation is accomplished on these properties using ground water, supplemented on certain tracts by surface water. The static water level is generally about 100 feet below the surface, and water of good quality is available in the large quantities necessary for rice irrigation.