54 NEBRASKA CATTLEMAN February 2024 conservationist. His father started practicing conservation methods such as rotational grazing and no-till farming in the ʻ90s. Pribbeno inherited his father’s passion for the environment and carried on the tradition of conservation. Pribbeno, his wife, Brianna, and his parents work alongside a team of employees implementing a variety of methods to improve soil health, manage natural resources ethically and maintain wildlife habitats. The two generations rely solely on the ranch for their incomes. The ranch’s 30,000 acres is managed with two things in mind – conservation and profitability. Wine Glass Ranch’s methods show that producers can be environmentally conscious while still profiting. One of their strategies is ecological edges. Every field is edged with native grasses that are appealing to beneficial predator insects that will eliminate destructive pests. “The best way I like to describe it to people is through a hunting comparison,” Pribbeno says. “Hunters don’t typically position themselves in the middle of a field or the forest. Elk and deer enjoy the edges – where the forest meets a meadow or where a meadow meets a creek.” Insects prefer these zones, he explains. The native grasses provide a habitat for beneficial predator insects, and it requires little land to accomplish. “Planting 1 to 3 percent of your land with native grasses will drastically change your insect population,” Pribbeno says. “Our neighbors have trouble with different pests that are becoming increasingly common, but we don’t have those problems because our predator species are significantly higher in number compared to our neighbors.” Wine Glass Ranch is situated in southwest Nebraska near the Sandhills, and the area is dry. It is common for crop farmers to practice crop rotation. “We do this because we’re in a water-scarce environment,” Pribbeno says. “Residue management is the crown jewel of The 2023 Nebraska Leopold Conservation Award winner was Trumler Ranch. The ranch is led by Chris Trumler, a third-generation agriculturalist. Trumler’s grandfather immigrated to the United States from Germany in the 1950s after World War II. He had grown up on a farm in Germany and loved hunting and fi shing. In the 1970s, Trumler’s dad bought a piece of land that was in need of restoration. He fenced off areas that had eroded from wind, and he planted trees to help preserve the soil. It was his job to water the trees as a kid, and he started noticing that wildlife were making their homes in the trees that he was taking care of. As he grew up, Trumler carried on the tradition of conservation and planted more trees and practiced environmentally friendly methods while producing cattle. He uses a deferred grazing system, which means he keeps his cattle off a certain part of the land until July each year. This allows the vegetation to grow and wildlife to flourish on that land. He also limits cattle access to natural waterways to prevent erosion. Some other examples of conservation-oriented practices include crop rotation, no-till, cover crops, sub-surface drip irrigation and planting pollinator-friendly vegetation. Trumler Ranch CONTINUED ON PAGE 56 CONSERVING FOR THE FUTURE CONTINUED FROM PAGE 53
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