[Sacred Succulents] Supporting Sacred Succulents Nursery & Conservancy Gardens
Sacred Succulents
sacredsucculents at hushmail.com
Tue Dec 2 06:38:00 PST 2025
[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
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