Why We Do This Work
My great-grandmother with her children and cousins. My grandmother, Tuda, is on the far right.
Letter from our Founder
My family came to northeastern New Mexico 300 years ago and passed down the ranch we now call Ute Creek Cattle Company.
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When my grandparents returned to the ranch in Bueyeros, New Mexico I was six and I realized my cousins, Bennet, and Seth, and I would be the 9th generation on this land. I knew my cousins and I would be successful because conservation and sustainability were always at the forefront of any change to the ranch.
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My grandparents began by welcoming the work of younger generations of experts to help them keep sustainability and conservation at the center of their work. First, they created 24 pastures out of the four that existed when they returned to introduce a rotational grazing pattern to increase soil diversity. They moved on to eradicating the water-sucking salt cedar which saved the riparian areas and the Ute Creek that became the cornerstone of the ranch and its conservation efforts. This was followed by my grandmother's creation of the Wild Bird Sanctuary which increased the bird count at the ranch from 17 species to over 100 native bird species and is now a Certified Wildlife Habitat. Dirt tanks and playa lakes replenish the water table underneath the ranch and circular corrals protect our cattle from stress while we are working them. Five water tanks have shade balls that save 16,000 gallons of water from five 20-foot tanks.
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The innovations my grandparents spearheaded have not been cheap, but they have been in constant pursuit of creating a sustainable, conservation-oriented home for the generations to come. It has been their mission and their life's greatest joy. Following in the footsteps of my grandparents and the strides they have made in 20 years is a responsibility I do not take lightly.
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My grandparents showed me that sustainability on our ranch means sustainability for all family ranches because generational ranches across the country are a legacy that needs to be protected and improved upon. Ranch Lab is my contribution to sustainable ranching. My grandparents' work proves that when generations work together, incredible things can happen. And I know that kind of motivation is exactly what ranching and rural communities in this country need right now. My ranch and my family are my “Why.
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-Bella Wood
Founder and Executive Director
My great-grandfather in the 1940's.
Vision
We believe that by creating a partnership between like-minded individuals with different skills, we can bridge the science-society divide and increase knowledge diversity in ranching. By facilitating researchers, ranchers, and communities working in tandem we can address direct challenges by implementing environmentally efficient, cost-effective, and pertinent solutions.
