Historically Speaking
Oklahoma resides in the Great Plains, which once covered millions of acres in central North America.  This vast grassland complex extended from the Gulf of Mexico north into Canada and from foothills of the Rocky Mountains eastward into Illinois.  This beautiful mosaic of grass, forbs and trees was once home to herds of elk and bison as well as thousands of other creatures.

Firestarters
Oklahoma’s prairies w ere home and hunting grounds to Native Americans for thousands of years before European settlement.  These early inhabitants depended on the prairie for survival and managed it according to their needs and abilities.  One management tool used was fire.  Whether deliberately set or started by lightning, fire was a major component in the development of many prairie plant and animal species.

Sooners
The famous land runs of the 1800’s and invention of barbed wire forever changed the face of Oklahoma’s rangeland.  Settlers were required to farm the 160 acres given to them under the Homestead Act, so the lush prairie grass was turned under and crops were planted.  On land that could not be cropped, barbed wire was strung to mark ownership boundaries, restricting the movement of livestock and often resulting in over-grazing of the native rangeland.

Today’s Valuable Resource
Rangelands occupy 47% of the earth’s total land area; they are a productive and important resource.  In Oklahoma alone there are 23 million acres of rangeland encompassing 50 percent of the state’s land area. 

Nature’s Beauty
Those who enjoy the wide open spaces will love the world of grass and flowers found only on Oklahoma rangeland. Rangeland scenes are not static; they transform from season to season, sunset to sunset. An endless variety of plants can be seen on rangeland. Tall grasses like Canada wildrye and Indiangrass can be found on wetter areas while short grasses like blue grama and buffalograss grow in drier sites.  A rich assortment of flowering plants, shrubs and trees add to the diversity of rangelands.

Home on the Range
Grazing animals is the most efficient, and usually the only way, to utilize the native vegetation found on rangelands.  Domestic animals such as cattle, sheep and goats harvest grass and other rangeland plants, which are then converted to food, wool, and leather.  Rangelands provide food and cover for thousands of different animals.  White-tailed deer, fox, prairie dogs, game birds, and many song birds thrive on rangeland, providing abundant recreational opportunities for nature lovers.  Rangeland vegetation provides valuable ground cover which reduces the chances of soil erosion helping to keep our lakes, streams and drinking water clean.  Much of Oklahoma relies upon surface water for municipal purposes (household, farmland and industrial).

Oklahoma’s State Grass
One of our state's most abundant grasses is Indiangrass (Sorghastrum nutans).  It can be found growing on soils across the state and is considered one of the important “Big Four” tall grasses (the others are big bluestem, little bluestem, and switchgrass).  Indiangrass is found on healthy rangeland and, above all, is a manor guardian against wind and water erosion.  Indiangrass can be identified by its distinctive golden plume-like seeds heads.

Pictures, left to right, are: Indiangrass, Big Bluestem, Little Bluestem and Switchgrass.