Counties with the most farmland in Texas
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Counties with the most farmland in Texas
Farmland across the U.S. is disappearing by the millions of acres each decade by some estimates as sprawling urban development driven by rising housing costs pushes further into rural pastures.
The farmland that still exists in the U.S. is heavily dedicated to growing plants that Americans can’t consume—grass. That grass, accounting for more than 300 million acres now, feeds our livestock, provides sod for new development, and serves as a cover crop to protect soil health between harvests.
Demand for major crops like corn and soybeans to feed Americans is only forecast by the USDA to grow in the coming decade, and demand for U.S. agricultural exports is expected to grow similarly.
The COVID-19 pandemic dramatically changed the way people purchased and consumed food, placing renewed attention on an increasingly consolidated agricultural industry where family farms have been swallowed up by large food corporations.
And after shifting behaviors caused massive economic swings in the U.S. and elsewhere, the Russian invasion of Ukraine forced food producers to once again account for yet another shock with so much of the world’s grain capital taken offline by warfare.
War and corporate interests aside, farms have also had to reckon with a changing climate. Wheat fields were once commonplace across the country, but drought conditions of late have caused farmers to give up growing the crop entirely. Agitated by climate change, the shortage of water in parts of the country coupled with higher interest rates and the ongoing war in Ukraine are making agricultural businesses harder to run profitably.
To illustrate where American farms still persevere, Stacker compiled a list of counties with the most farmland in Texas using data from the Agriculture Department’s Farm Service Agency. Farmers reported the data as mandated by participation in USDA income support programs, including Agriculture Risk Coverage and Price Loss Coverage as well as loan assistance. Counties are ranked by total acres of farmland.
In Texas, there are 76,162,930 acres of farmland, with native grass being the most common crop.
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#25. Runnels
– Farmland: 625,895 acres (.8% of state total)
– Farms: 1,808
– Most common crop: Native grass (277,227 acres, 44.3% of county farmland)
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#24. Schleicher
– Farmland: 630,226 acres (.8% of state total)
– Farms: 396
– Most common crop: Native grass (602,981 acres, 95.7% of county farmland)
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#23. Terrell
– Farmland: 644,346 acres (.8% of state total)
– Farms: 57
– Most common crop: Native grass (644,346 acres, 100.0% of county farmland)
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#22. Webb
– Farmland: 644,671 acres (.8% of state total)
– Farms: 287
– Most common crop: Native grass (634,265 acres, 98.4% of county farmland)
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#21. Floyd
– Farmland: 646,008 acres (.8% of state total)
– Farms: 1,622
– Most common crop: Native grass (118,565 acres, 18.4% of county farmland)
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#20. Jeff Davis
– Farmland: 658,667 acres (.9% of state total)
– Farms: 40
– Most common crop: Native grass (658,667 acres, 100.0% of county farmland)
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#19. Swisher
– Farmland: 667,035 acres (.9% of state total)
– Farms: 1,386
– Most common crop: Hard red winter wheat (152,805 acres, 22.9% of county farmland)
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#18. Gaines
– Farmland: 667,386 acres (.9% of state total)
– Farms: 1,760
– Most common crop: Cotton upland (133,075 acres, 19.9% of county farmland)
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#17. King
– Farmland: 706,243 acres (.9% of state total)
– Farms: 139
– Most common crop: Native grass (656,918 acres, 93.0% of county farmland)
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#16. Dallam
– Farmland: 706,421 acres (.9% of state total)
– Farms: 492
– Most common crop: Native grass (293,631 acres, 41.6% of county farmland)
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#15. Parmer
– Farmland: 709,036 acres (.9% of state total)
– Farms: 1,127
– Most common crop: Hard red winter wheat (106,138 acres, 15.0% of county farmland)
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#14. Edwards
– Farmland: 709,873 acres (.9% of state total)
– Farms: 588
– Most common crop: Native grass (709,790 acres, 100.0% of county farmland)
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#13. Castro
– Farmland: 724,200 acres (1.0% of state total)
– Farms: 1,131
– Most common crop: Hard red winter wheat (84,687 acres, 11.7% of county farmland)
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#12. Tom Green
– Farmland: 745,967 acres (1.0% of state total)
– Farms: 1,188
– Most common crop: Native grass (494,827 acres, 66.3% of county farmland)
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#11. Kenedy
– Farmland: 754,025 acres (1.0% of state total)
– Farms: 11
– Most common crop: Native grass (754,025 acres, 100.0% of county farmland)
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#10. Hansford
– Farmland: 758,189 acres (1.0% of state total)
– Farms: 879
– Most common crop: Native grass (247,700 acres, 32.7% of county farmland)
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#9. Wilbarger
– Farmland: 883,717 acres (1.2% of state total)
– Farms: 865
– Most common crop: Native grass (548,145 acres, 62.0% of county farmland)
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#8. Val Verde
– Farmland: 909,399 acres (1.2% of state total)
– Farms: 127
– Most common crop: Native grass (909,108 acres, 100.0% of county farmland)
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#7. Hartley
– Farmland: 950,044 acres (1.2% of state total)
– Farms: 365
– Most common crop: Native grass (509,995 acres, 53.7% of county farmland)
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#6. Brewster
– Farmland: 986,348 acres (1.3% of state total)
– Farms: 45
– Most common crop: Native grass (986,348 acres, 100.0% of county farmland)
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#5. Crockett
– Farmland: 1,052,863 acres (1.4% of state total)
– Farms: 155
– Most common crop: Native grass (1,052,033 acres, 99.9% of county farmland)
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#4. Reeves
– Farmland: 1,110,706 acres (1.5% of state total)
– Farms: 150
– Most common crop: Native grass (1,054,734 acres, 95.0% of county farmland)
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#3. Deaf Smith
– Farmland: 1,159,659 acres (1.5% of state total)
– Farms: 1,046
– Most common crop: Native grass (361,791 acres, 31.2% of county farmland)
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#2. Hudspeth
– Farmland: 1,322,008 acres (1.7% of state total)
– Farms: 113
– Most common crop: Native grass (1,278,057 acres, 96.7% of county farmland)
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#1. Pecos
– Farmland: 1,403,372 acres (1.8% of state total)
– Farms: 279
– Most common crop: Native grass (1,378,050 acres, 98.2% of county farmland)
