Next Year Country: How Years Of Prairie Cultivation Have Led Back To Native Grass

If walls could talk, the pistachio green surface of Sally Austin's kitchen would instantaneously have you settled in over a cup of steaming Folgers. A gallery of framed photos, some slightly askew, tells the story of the 70 years Austin has lived on the ranch. Tucked among them, funeral programs and a well-worn flyswatter remind you of life's unvarnished realities. Legacies experience loss. Ranches have bugs.

Perched atop a cushioned kitchen chair, Austin reflects on the history of the 125 years the property has been in the hands of her and her late husband's family. What began as a modest plot now stretches over what were once 41 unique homesteads near the town of Whitewater, Mont. This includes the last homestead 'proved up on' in the lower 48 in 1959 as well as a testament to the women of the West.

"This homestead that I'm living on right now was my mother-in-law's," tells Austin. "And she was the first married woman allowed to prove up on a homestead."

This concept of 'proving up' is rooted in the Homestead Act of 1862, a pivotal moment in American history that offered a path to land ownership for those willing to cultivate it. The Act provided that any adult citizen, or intended citizen, who had never borne arms against the U.S. government could claim 160 acres of surveyed government land. In the proving up process, claimants were required to live on and improve their plot by cultivating the land. Done well and with a small fee, the claimant received title to the property.

Turning over ground to plant cash crops was celebrated with a cyclical melody of till, plant, harvest settling over the West. Years moved forward and with them, new reasons to continue that cycle.

"Through the eighties, the farm crisis and interest rates and land values and pressures on farm markets incentivized a lot of cultivation and transition to farming on acres in this area," says Martin Townsend, Ranchers Stewardship Alliance (RSA) Conservation Coordinator as he discusses the three northern Montana counties the rancher-led nonprofit serves.

While these choices made sense at the time, land dynamics change. In a juxtaposition of past and present, some decisions have led back to where we began: native grasses. Reseeding marginal farmland back to grass expands flexibility in grazing programs and creates a rich habitat for wildlife while adding tremendously to the retention of soil moisture and carbon.

Reseeding projects are a big component of the conservation work done by RSA. Partnerships with the Natural Resources Conservation Service, World Wildlife Fund, Ducks Unlimited, Pheasants Forever, and the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service Partners for Fish and Wildlife program have all added funds to the process, reducing costs for the producer. Benefiting multiple wildlife species, a keen focus on Austin's ranch is high-value waterfowl nesting habitat.

"Really we're just trying to respond best to whatever the agricultural community wants," says Townsend. "And then we're trying to match agricultural community needs and places where people want grass with wildlife needs."

Reseeding in the arid West is an act of faith as much as science, where the land's unpredictability demands patience and perseverance. Requiring a Goldilocks mixture of just-right moisture, planting depth, and temperature, not all reseeds take off immediately. From her kitchen, Austin takes it all in stride, reflecting on a planting from the previous year that didn't go perfectly but was popping up more and more by the day.

"It's next year country and you just got to keep going," says Austin. "You just keep doing the best you can."

The Ranchers Stewardship Alliance continues to do just that. Driven by the unwavering interest of ranchers and the support of committed conservation partners, RSA is relentless in its mission to showcase the symbiotic relationship between working lands conservation and thriving wildlife habitats while celebrating the energy both bring to rural communities.

For Sally Austin, the ranch isn't just where she lives. It's who she is. It's woven into the fabric of her soul, where she's poured her life, love, and loss into every acre. The ranch is her history, her legacy, and her life's work. Ranching isn't just about making a living. It's about making a life.