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Michael Martin Meléndrez



Michael Martin Meléndrez and his wife Kari Meléndrez, own three New Mexico agri-businesses based out of Los Lunas, New Mexico.  Trees That Please - a tree farm and nursery, Soil Secrets LLC a manufacturer of biological soil management products, and Soil Secrets Worldwide LLC - the international division.  

Michael prefers to be known as the son of his Father, Sam Melendrez, a well known farmer and retired John Deere implement man from Las Cruces who’s a descendent of Pablo Jose Melendres, the founder of Las Cruces.  Michael is proud to say that his Father is his mentor and hero, who helped him start Trees That Please.  Michael’s goal in starting Soil Secrets was first to discover ways of fixing soil and in particular the soil of his future botanical collection, now known as the arboretum.  He also wanted products that he could use at Trees That Please, which mimicked the process of nature and utilized only ingredients that could meet the benchmark of organic, but also have the highest standard of efficacy in the industry.  Today the products of Soil Secrets go beyond Trees That Please and products sold to home-owners, as they pass the most stringent tests for efficacy and are now used in farming, mine reclamation and Brownfield reclamation across North America, with expansion now going global.

Michael is a strong advocate of using plants that are native to the Chihuahuan Desert Region and in particular the many species of Oak, which today his nursery propagates and grows. He also developed a botanical garden of trees called the Arboretum Tomé, a large collection of Chihuahuan Desert species of oak, as well as many other tree species from around the world. The Arboretum was started in 1987 with soil that was toxic to many plants, as it was Saline Sodic and very alkaline.  The soils have since been rehabilitated using the biological soil management products and protocols formulated by Soil Secrets. Michael loves oaks, and is one of the original members of the International Oak Society, started back in the early 90’s, now represented by plant scientists from every continent and many nations of the world.  At the next world conference of the International Oak Society in Bordeaux-France in 2012, Michael has been asked to present a lecture on Integrated Soil Management using the Bio-Geo-Chemical Process of Soil Building and Plant Nutrition. 

As you can see, Michael is all about growing plants and fixing soil, using the natural processes of Nature, and he hopes that you will someday visit his nursery and arboretum in Los Lunas New Mexico.   
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Comments

Anonymous said…
It was very interesting to read about Michael's background. There was no mention of his education which is extensive. It would be interesting to know what has been his educational path since his knowledge is so extensive.
February 21, 2012 at 2:25 PM
Trees That Please Nursery said…
Hi Anonymous, this is Michael. Thank you for your interest in my academic background, however what's more important about Trees That Please than who's Michael, is that we do good work producing the best inventory of Native, Shade, Fruit and Ornamental trees in the region. Since we don't use soluble in-organic fertilizers to grow our trees, the trees we produce are healthier than what's typically found in the industry. The blog tells a story about who the owner of the business is, in this case me, which lets the reader know that Trees That Please is not owned by Venture Capitalists, or a Corporation without a face. But I want you to know that its not about me as much as it is about my staff and I have the best staff of any nursery in Northern New Mexico. That's more important to me than anything else! My job is to keep everyone inspired and moving in the right direction and to make sure the bills are paid.

Thanks again and please share our blog with your friends.

Michael Martin Meléndrez
February 21, 2012 at 4:11 PM
Gravel alabama said…
Impressive blog layout, I have read this post, That's truly very informative & knowledgeable for me, Thanks...
September 7, 2013 at 3:27 AM
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