From sacredsucculents at hushmail.com Tue Dec 2 06:38:00 2025 From: sacredsucculents at hushmail.com (Sacred Succulents) Date: Tue, 02 Dec 2025 06:38:00 -0800 Subject: [Sacred Succulents] Supporting Sacred Succulents Nursery & Conservancy Gardens Message-ID: <9e814dfc0bcbac0085490a71d520905eaaa107196a410dfa@smtp.hushmail.com> [Note: do not respond to this email, use benkamm at monitor.net ] Greetings friends and fellow plant-people, This is a call for aid. We seek your support to fund extensive renovations to the aging infrastructure of Sacred Succulent's nursery & conservancy-research garden?endeavors that are now _critical_ to preserving the high diversity of rare & endangered plants we offer and grow here in the face of ongoing losses from increasingly erratic climatic shifts. The first and most vital phase is renovating the entirety of our irrigation systems. Your help is crucial for us to accomplish this massive undertaking. Please Consider Making a Donation Today?any amount helps! https://ssbp.betterworld.org/campaigns/renovating-our-nursery Your generosity also helps to: *Sustain and fortify our diverse living plant collections and seed bank. *Protect rare & endangered plants by supporting our propagation & distribution efforts. *Further our research, various writing projects, and efforts to educate and encourage others towards ethnobotanical and ecological literacy. _For more info and nursery photos, see _https://sacredsucculents.com/support-our-endeavors _Donations can also be sent as cash, check or money order to:_ Sacred Succulents, po box 781, Sebastopol, CA 95473 Handpicked plants & seeds, art, special access & catalog discounts, and nursery & garden tours are available as thank you gifts for your donations, select the various donation amounts for specifics. _Please help spread the word about the fundraiser_? we are not on any social media and rely on the grass-root efforts of our fellow phytophiles like you! Support our conservation work, research, and projects crucial to Sacred Succulents future: https://ssbp.betterworld.org ?If ever there was a project that deserved support, this is it! Your contributions make a crucial difference... you?ll be helping safeguard plants that are under threat from habitat loss and climate change while also promoting propagation, scientific study, and preservation of traditional knowledge. Not to mention, helping out an amazing family, who have devoted nearly all of their time and energy to making the world a better place, one rare plant at a time. Let?s unite the botanical community around this cause so these extraordinary species (including the rare Mr. Ben Kamm) continue to thrive in both the wild and in cultivation.? ?Matt Magee, Anthropologist, Author of _Peruvian Shamanism: The Pachakuti Mesa_ ?Sacred Succulent?s Ben Kamm has done great service to people and the planet through his preservation efforts. Hands-on practitioners like Ben have done more to protect plant diversity than all the governments in the world... Now is the time to step up and support this work!? ?David Theodoropoulos, Conservationist, Seedsman, Director of J.L. Hudson Seeds since 1973 ?Sacred Succulents is... a preserve and repository of many rare species... It is also the lifelong passion project of ethnobotanist Ben Kamm, who has devoted decades to locating, preserving, propagating and distributing rare species... This fine work is not supported by an institution, or any pool of wealth. It is supported by independent folks who care about preserving biodiversity, and the continuity of knowledge that must attend these species. A donation to help Sacred Succulents upgrade their facility is a vote for carrying these plants and our knowledge of them into the future.? ?Kat Harrison, Ethnobotanist, Co-Founder and Director of Botanical Dimensions ?It?s often passionate individuals that are responsible for stewardship of biodiversity and Ben has dedicated his life?s work to sacred succulent diversity. Contribute your support to keep this treasured living collection alive.? ?Susan Leopold, Ph.D., Director of United Plant Savers ?In the effort to conserve biological elements of Andean culture and fragile ecosystems, Sacred Succulents is on the cutting edge... This work deserves the same level of funding and support that the moon landing and green revolution received. Please help this work continue!? ?Neil Logan Ethnobotanist, Agroforester, Author of _Legacy Legumes: Trees of Renewal and Abundance_ _____ WEB CATALOG UPDATES: NOTE: We are _NOT _shipping plants & seeds this winter while we focus on renovations? such orders placed now _will ship Spring 2026..._ You're welcome to order from our Specimen Plant List now to reserve plants & seeds _to ship in Spring_ (March or April, 2026, exact date TBD). As it is, many species are already selling out... The _possible_ exception to this shipping hiatus is Andean Tubers?depending on the harvest later this month, we _may_ have a limited number available to purchase and ship in January, 2026. Please check back _after_ the new year for updates. _ _Gift Certificates are available_, please inquire. ___ SOLSTICE BOOK SALE! _Yes, we are currently shipping books: _through 12/21/25, take 10% off _all_ of our in-stock new books and collector's titles, with further deep discounts on select titles! ______ MISC. NEWS: We are excited about the publication of the stunning new book ? _MICROCOSMS: Sacred Plants of the Americas_ I've been a contributing researcher and photographer to this unique science-art project. _ _LITTLE, BIG_ In addition to caring for thousands of plants, the last few years I?ve assisted in publishing the anniversary edition of my friend John Crowley?s 1981 award winning novel, _Little, Big_. See Erik Davis' great essay about the book: https://www.burningshore.com/p/big-little-big Stock is low, _don?t pass up your chance to invest in these gorgeous literary artifacts made to last for generations._ Your final chance to obtain the Signed, Numbered edition?less than 10 copies remain! SOLSTICE SALE! From now until 11:59pm 12/21/25, use the discount code _LB2025_ to receive 15% off your order of the Trade Hardcover edition [a $26+ discount] and the limited edition poster. _ Classes in Andean Knowledge: Our companion on many of our Andean expeditions, Mateo Magee, is offering an educational weekend in Wimberly, Texas, December 13-14, to share some of what he?s learned of during the course of his unparalleled 27+ years of apprenticeship in the healing systems of Andean curanderismo. Mateo also has amazing online classes and courses available: https://www.livingtheceremony.com ____ _Further Words of Support for Sacred Succulents_: ?Ben Kamm?s lifelong dedication to plants has made him one of the most respected ethnobotanists and nursery experts working today. Through Sacred Succulents, he has shared rare and vital species with a global community of growers, always with deep ecological awareness and cultural respect. His vision combines scientific rigor with a gardener?s devotion, inspiring countless people to see plants as teachers as well as companions. Ben?s current fundraising efforts to strengthen the nursery?s infrastructure will ensure that his invaluable work can continue to flourish and better serve the many clients and admirers who depend on his knowledge, care, and integrity.? ?Steven F. White, Ph.D., Co-Author of _Microcosms: Sacred Plants of the Americas_ (Papadakis, 2025) ?Ben Kamm?s tireless work to cultivate and conserve rare succulents and other valuable plant species is unparalleled. Supporting this effort to recover and steward these critically important genetics will increase the resilience and persistence of this biodiversity reservoir for generations to come.? ?Kate Lundquist, WATER Institute Director, Occidental Arts & Ecology Center ?Sacred Succulent's Ben Kamm has done great service to people and the planet through his preservation efforts aimed at rare beneficial plants, especially Andean flora.. Hands-on practitioners like Ben have done more to protect plant diversity than all the governments in the world. Not only are we losing species and habitats, but are losing the rare class of dedicated plantsmen who do the important work of collecting and maintaining plants from endangered habitats. I absolutely support this fundraising effort. If we lose Ben?s efforts, the world will be a poorer place. The man has devoted his life to these plants, and we need to make sure he can continue for decades to come. Now is the time to step up and support this work!? ?David Theodoropoulos, Conservationist, Seedsman, Director of J.L. Hudson Seeds [founded in 1911] since 1973 ?I really want to thank you for taking care of these very interesting and hard-to find plants with such dedication. Being able to source tubers and seeds from you really enhanced our South American crops collection and I am so glad to be able to share these plants with people who visit us. People who are familiar with them are often delighted to see these plants, and most others are seeing them for the first time! I appreciate you making these fascinating plants available?they are really special and I salute your work!!? ?Catherine Callaway, Horticulturist, Ethnobotanical Collections, UC Botanical Garden, Berkeley ?In the effort to conserve biological elements of Andean culture and fragile xerophytic ecosystems, Sacred Succulents is on the cutting edge?a trend setter decades ahead of most others engaged in this kind of work. Land use changes over the last 500 years have greatly impacted the Andes and their people. The situation is dire requiring an 'all hands on deck' response. Sacred Succulents has risen to the occasion by tirelessly collecting, propagating, and distributing these botanical treasures along with collection notes about their cultural and ecological contexts. Frankly, projects like Sacred Succulents should be set up in every bioregion on the planet to help multiply and distribute local germ-plasm and knowledge. This work deserves the same level of funding and support that the moon landing and green revolution received. Please help this work continue!? ?Neil Logan Ethnobotanist, Agroforester, Author of _Legacy Legumes: Trees of Renewal and Abundance_ ?Ben Kamm has been in service to people and plants, specifically plant enthusiasts and entheogenic succulents, for as long back as my botanical memory reaches. Service. ?What goes around comes around,? as they say here in Southern Oregon. Serving people by way of plants is perhaps one of the most enjoyable and effective paths. Plants offer silent solace, sitting there on the windowsill, filtering the air, making oxygen. Secondary compounds held in their bodies, molecules that heal illness or expand consciousness, are less tangible than the visible tissues, spines and epidermis, fleeting flowers, yet hold great promise to mend the human condition. Some of these effects are known. Some are yet to be discovered. In each case, conserving the plants themselves is necessary, worthy of our selfless contributions. We are of body and mind. Supporting rare plant conservation, these strange species from far-flung places, is one way of throwing bread upon the waters of our best human potential. May the minnows in the shallows be nourished. They are. . . us.? ?Richo Cech, Author, Plantsman, founder of Strictly Medicinal Seeds ?Yule is a time of giving, which includes spreading some philanthropy around. This season, I urge you to consider throwing some of that love towards Sacred Succulents... headed up by the brilliant and passionate plant-man Ben Kamm. Sacred Succulents is, without doubt, the premier nursery for _Trichocereus_ cactus offerings. But the outfit is also dedicated to the preservation of ethnobotanical knowledge and rare and endangered plants. Ben is a fiercely DIY guy, and I am amazed at his independent efforts to sustain his mail-order nursery, public-access seed bank, and research gardens... But Ben?s nursery and gardens now need some serious renovation work. In the immortal words of the Lorax, ?_Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better ? it?s not_.? ? ?Erik Davis, Cultural Historian, Author of _Techgnosis, High Weirdness, The Visionary State_, etc. ___ _Our deepest gratitude for all your support ? as a small, family-run organization, it is essential and goes a long way!_ Ben Kamm & family Sacred Succulents: Rare & Endangered Beneficial Plants & Seeds Conservation of Resilient Biodiversity through Propagation, Dissemination and Education PO Box 781 Sebastopol, CA 95473 USA _Become a patron of our vital endeavors:_ https://ssbp.betterworld.org/donate _We do not take Paypal or other online payments. Still just cash, check or money order to our PO box._ ~~~~~~~~~~~ Jonathan Ott Books Deluxe editions of ethnopharmacologist Jonathan Ott's books To stay informed of the latest books and work of Jonathan Ott, sign up for the email list at - https://lists.sonic.net/mailman/listinfo/jonathanottbooks __ If you wish to be removed from this list, please unsubscribe the same you signed up: http://lists.sonic.net/mailman/listinfo/sacredsucculents -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: