Rangeland Monitoring is a more general term for a whole array of practices designed to help ranchers collect, analyze and interpret data about their land in order to evaluate progress toward meeting management objectives. It is based on the premise that we cannot make effective management decisions if we do not know the effect of past management actions. The key elements of rangeland monitoring include:
historical use records for the ranch (if available)
climate and weather data
summary of current land use practices
establishment of trend study sites and photo points
soil, water and vegetation analyses
photographs
Many states have developed rangeland monitoring handbooks to help landowners and managers in this process. These handbooks provide detailed ‘how to’ information on specific monitoring techniques. Here are a few examples:
