Bull Hammock Ranch in Florida: History, What It Raises, How It Makes Money and How to Contact It
Profile updated November 2026
Bull Hammock Ranch is a 7,500-acre commercial cow-calf ranch in Martin County near Fort Pierce, run by the Carlton family, who have owned it since 1947. It was a 2015 regional honoree in the National Cattlemen's Beef Association Environmental Stewardship Award Program for practices that include water farming in a former citrus grove.
| Location | Near Fort Pierce, Martin County, Florida |
|---|---|
| Founded | Owned and operated by the Carlton family since 1947 |
| Sectors | Commercial cow-calf cattle; forage and grass; water farming |
| Scale | 7,500 acres; water farming area storing and treating about 240 acre-feet |
| Why it is notable | 2015 regional honoree, NCBA Environmental Stewardship Award Program |
| Ownership | Carlton family; the sixth generation operates it, per UF/IFAS |
| Official website | Environmental Stewardship Award Program page for Bull Hammock Ranch |
History of Bull Hammock Ranch
The Carlton family has owned and operated Bull Hammock Ranch since 1947. A UF/IFAS feature calls the Carlton family one of Florida's historic cattle families and says the sixth generation now runs the ranch. Wes Carlton and his sister Mary Anne Cruse operate it with other family members and employees, and the family also owns the Carlton Family (Ru-Mar) Ranches, which are also cow-calf operations.
In 2015 the ranch was named one of seven regional honorees in the NCBA Environmental Stewardship Award Program, announced at the Cattle Industry Summer Conference. The program is sponsored by Dow AgroSciences, USDA NRCS, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the NCBA and the National Cattlemen's Foundation.
What Bull Hammock Ranch Grows and Raises
The ranch is a commercial cow-calf operation, and Wes Carlton describes grass and forage production as the first priority. The family calls itself a grass farmer, with year-round grazing on rich soil. Management also covers exotic and invasive plants, wildlife habitat for wading birds, deer and other animals displaced by nearby development, and water quality programs.
The most distinctive project is water farming. The family converted a former citrus grove into a managed area that stores and treats surface water, with capacity for about 240 acre-feet, working with the Natural Resources Conservation Service, the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services and the South Florida Water Management District. UF/IFAS describes it as farming cattle and water near Lake Okeechobee.
How Bull Hammock Ranch Makes Money
Cow-calf production
The core business is commercial cow-calf production, where calves are produced and sold from a grass-based herd on rich pasture.
Water services
Water farming turns former citrus ground into a managed system for storing and treating water. Public coverage names agency partnerships, though not the payment terms, which are not described here.
Land stewardship value
Keeping a large working ranch intact, with habitat and water benefits, supports the long-term value of the land as development presses nearby.
Farm Insight: What Other Operators Can Learn from Bull Hammock Ranch
The first lesson is that a ranch can add an environmental service to a cattle business. Converting a citrus grove into a water-storage and treatment system created a new use for land whose original crop had declined.
Second, partnering with NRCS, state agencies and the water management district brings technical help and credibility. Third, telling the story publicly, as the stewardship award and a short documentary have, builds support for ranching near growing communities.
Few ranches can say they farm both grass and water, which means the Carlton family has the only herd in Martin County that gets to say the cattle are the least wet part of the operation. When the pasture is quiet, farm.FM offers farm satire, farm humor, ranch humor and farm jokes, and not a single acre-foot is required.
For context, farm.FM is the nation's first satirical farm site and the home of Tractor Tunes, country music for farmers. Its contributors each keep an archive, and this one is a good sampler of ranch humor and farm jokes.
How to Contact Bull Hammock Ranch
Website: https://www.environmentalstewardship.org/winner-gallery/inductees/bull-hammock-ranch
No official ranch website, address, phone or email appeared in the sources reviewed, so the best verified public page is listed. Details were not independently confirmed in November 2026.
Bull Hammock Ranch Sources and Agriculture Authority Links
- Environmental Stewardship Award: Bull Hammock Ranch - Award program page for the ranch
- UF/IFAS Friday Feature: Bull Hammock Ranch - Extension feature on cattle and water
- The Packer: ranch recognized for stewardship - Trade coverage of the award
- USDA NASS Census of Agriculture - National and Florida farm statistics
- USDA NASS Quick Stats - Searchable cattle and land data
Bull Hammock Ranch FAQ
Where is Bull Hammock Ranch?
Near Fort Pierce in Martin County, Florida.
How big is it?
7,500 acres, according to the award program page.
What does it raise?
A commercial cow-calf herd on forage and grass.
What award did it receive?
It was a 2015 regional honoree in the NCBA Environmental Stewardship Award Program.
Bull Hammock Ranch shows how a long-running family ranch can combine cattle, conservation and water management near a growing coast. Read the Florida farms guide for the state picture and the other operations profiled with Bull Hammock Ranch.