“A land ethic, then, reflects the existence of an ecological conscience, and this in turn reflects a conviction of individual responsibility for the health of the land. Health is the capacity of the land for self renewal. Conservation is our effort to understand and preserve this capacity.”
– Aldo Leopold
My research philosophy and motivation:
As human beings we are responsible for the health of the land. We need to sit quietly, observe, and listen to what the land is telling us in its current state. Once our observations are collected, we hypothesize and then implement our strategy to restore the land to our notion of “perfect health.” We cannot prescribe a general treatment; instead, by understanding the ecological underpinnings that govern plant communities and rangeland systems, we assist the land in moving toward self-renewal. Thus, my work is people-centric and driven by a desire to help others not only understand, but value what rangelands have to offer.
Current research themes:
- Producer education through cohort Extension programs
- Supporting producers through novel approaches
- Precision ranching technologies such as virtual fencing
- Riparian restoration using low-cost, low-tech, process-based restoration techniques such as beaver dam analogs (BDAs)
- Investigating the impact of precision ranching technologies on mixed-grass plant communities, above and below-ground biomass, and soil respiration
Past themes of my research have included:
- Past SDSU work:
- Engaging youth in agriculture
- Postdoc work: Understanding the interaction between barberry invasion, tick populations, and white-footed mice
- Ph.D. work:
- Integrating and implementing novel management strategies such as biological controls for an invasive annual grass
- Undergraduate research projects driven by students’ interests
- M.S. work: Enhancing the efficacy of herbicides and integrated management in range and cropping systems for cheatgrass control
- Undergraduate work: Impacts of soil amendments on soil nutrients, re-invasion, and native plant communities associated with buckthorn invasion
Krista Ehlert, Ph.D. 
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