Rangeland in southwest North Dakota gets thirsty, typically receiving less than 13 inches of rain over summer. That droughty climate, coupled with evolving beef production methods, has driven North Dakota ranchers like Wendell and Linda Vigen and Chester and Jane Brandt to pursue every possible option for making the most of every raindrop and every bite of grass on their ranches.

Twice-over grazing is one of the practices both ranchers adopted in the 1980s when North Dakota State range scientist Lee Manske was promoting the new grazing principle he began studying in the late 1970’s.