**AWARDS ISSUED PRIOR TO JANUARY 20, 2025, WERE FUNDED UNDER PREVIOUS ADMINISTRATIONS AND MAY NOT REFLECT THE PRIORITIES AND POLICIES OF THE CURRENT ADMINISTRATION.** POOR CROP AND GRAZING MANAGEMENT PRACTICES HAVE DECREASED SOIL HEALTH AND CONTRIBUTED TO DECREASED PRODUCTIVITY AND PROFITABILITY IN MUCH OF THE SOUTHERN GREAT PLAINS (SGP). ADOPTION OF ECOLOGICALLY SENSITIVE, LOW-COST CONSERVATION MANAGEMENT PRACTICES SUCH AS PASTURE CROPPING CAN POTENTIALLY ENHANCE HEALTH AND RESILIENCY OF DEGRADED SOILS. PASTURE CROPPING IS A FARMER-INITIATED, INNOVATIVE LAND MANAGEMENT SYSTEM THAT SEAMLESSLY INTEGRATES DIRECT SEEDING OF ANNUAL CROPS INTO DORMANT PERENNIAL GRASSES. ALTHOUGH THE SGP REGION PROVIDES AN EXCELLENT PLATFORM FOR THIS REGENERATIVE APPROACH THAT ORIGINATED IN AUSTRALIA, STUDIES EVALUATING SOIL HEALTH BENEFITS OF PASTURE CROPPING ARE LACKING.THE OVERARCHING GOAL OF THIS STAKEHOLDER-DRIVEN STUDY IS TO EVALUATE IMPROVEMENTS IN SOIL-DEPENDENT ECOSYSTEM SERVICES WHEN GRASSLANDS ARE PASTURE CROPPED ON THE SGP. SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES ARE TO: 1) EVALUATE THE SOIL HEALTH BENEFITS OF PASTURE CROPPED PERENNIAL GRASSLANDS USING GROUND- AND UNMANNED AERIAL VEHICLE (UAV) BASED MEASUREMENTS, 2) ASSESS THE RANCH- AND WATERSHED-SCALE IMPROVEMENTS IN ECOSYSTEM SERVICES FROM ADOPTION OF PASTURE CROPPING ON GRASSLANDS, AND 3) ANALYZE SHORT- AND LONG-TERM PROFITABILITY OF PASTURE CROPPING IN COMPARISON TO CONVENTIONAL PRACTICES UNDER DIFFERENT WEATHER AND MARKET CONDITIONS.WE WILL COMBINE FIELD EXPERIMENTS, UAV-BASED MEASUREMENTS, ENVIRONMENTAL MODELING AND ECONOMIC ANALYSES TO ACHIEVE THE OBJECTIVES OF THIS STUDY. PASTURE CROPPING FIELD EXPERIMENTS WILL BE CONDUCTED AT THE WEST TEXAS A&AMP;M UNIVERSITY'S NANCE RANCH NEAR CANYON, TX IN RANDALL COUNTY AND AT THE DIXON WATER FOUNDATION'S PITTMAN RANCH NEAR MUENSTER, TX IN COOKE COUNTY. MODELING EFFORTS WILL FOCUS ON THE HEADWATERS OF THE PRAIRIE DOG TOWN FORK OF THE RED RIVER WATERSHED IN THE TEXAS PANHANDLE, WHICH CONTAINS THE NANCE RANCH; AND THE CLEAR CREEK WATERSHED IN NORTH CENTRAL TEXAS, WHICH CONTAINS THE PITTMAN RANCH. THE FINDINGS FROM THIS STUDY WILL BE INCORPORATED INTO AN IN-DEPTH GRAZING AND RANCH MANAGEMENT SCHOOL, AND PRESENTED AT VARIOUS SCIETIFIC AND STAKEHOLDER MEETINGS. WE EXPECT THAT THE QUANTIFICATION OF IMPROVEMENTS TO ECOSYSTEMS SERVICES AND PROFITABILITY DUE TO ADOPTION OF PASTURE CROPPING, AND ENHANCING PRODUCER/RANCHER AWARENESS WILL PROMOTE THE ADOPTION OF PASTURE CROPPING.