Polson rancher honored for contributions to range management

Polson cattle rancher Greg Gardner received the Sustained Lifetime Achievement Award at the Society for Range Management’s 76th Annual Meeting in Boise, Idaho, in February.

The Sustained Lifetime Achievement Award honors Gardner for “the contributions to the science and management of rangeland ecosystems he has made.”

Gardner earned a degree in range management from Montana State University in 1979. He and his wife, Lynn, purchased their current 7,000-acre ranch in 1990 and have worked hard to further develop it into a model of good range management.

They have built five miles of new fence, put in nine miles of stock water pipes, and installed a pumping system to lift stock water 900 vertical feet to obtain more uniform grazing. The extensive infrastructure updates allowed Gardner to implement a successful rest rotation system.

He has also been aggressive in the control of invasive species. Gardner is a firm believer that one must be a good steward of the land in order to be a successful rancher.

Besides working hard on the ranch, he served two years as president of the Western Montana Stockman’s Association and served 10 years on the Lake County Conservation District Board. He has hosted range tours for the local soil conservation district and, for 10 years, he headed up local youth education programs focused on land stewardship.

The Polson Chamber of Commerce has twice named Gardner “Ag Person of the Year.”

Chuck Jarecki, a retired Polson rancher, longtime advocate of good land management, and life member of the Society for Range Management, said the award went “to a very deserving man.”