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Atascosa County Ranch News: Burn Ban Runs to Nov. 22 as Rain Loosens Severe Drought Around Pleasanton

November 11, 2026  |  By Lee, Lee & Puckitt

Atascosa County Ranch News: Burn Ban Runs to Nov. 22 as Rain Loosens Severe Drought Around Pleasanton

Rain has reached the brush country south of San Antonio, but Atascosa County’s 90-day burn ban stays on the books until Nov. 22. Commissioners approved the ban on Aug. 24, and Texas A&M Forest Service data on Nov. 11 still listed it in effect. For landowners from Jourdanton and Pleasanton to Poteet and Charlotte, our team at Lee, Lee & Puckitt (LLP Ranchland) pulled together the burn rules, the drought and the county’s cattle history.

Burn Ban Rules Until Nov. 22

The Pleasanton Express reported Aug. 26 that the Commissioners Court authorized a countywide ban through Nov. 22 after crews had answered 80 fires since Aug. 1, according to Fire Marshal Ronald Sanchez. Under the order, household trash may be burned only in a barrel with a wire grate, cooking fires remain allowed, and any approved fire needs water on hand and someone watching it.

After rain, the county lifted the ban for one weekend, Oct. 2 through Oct. 4, then put it back in force. Before any allowed burn, call the Sheriff’s Office at 830-769-3434 to be logged.

Drought and Grass

The U.S. Drought Monitor had all of Atascosa County in severe drought on every weekly map from Sept. 29 through Oct. 27; the Nov. 3 map trimmed that to 93.77 percent.

Atascosa reports with Texas A&M AgriLife Extension’s South district. The Nov. 10 district summary said a cool front brought widespread rain, from about 2 inches to as much as 9 inches in some places, while other spots stayed dry. Reporters expected range and pasture to improve, though cooler weather will slow grass growth. Cattle producers were supplementing more heavily and lining up winter hay, and screwworm monitoring continued.

Deer Season Notes

The South district report said deer season opened slowly in the rain, but deer and quail numbers looked strong, with more whitetail twins this fall. TPWD’s Atascosa County page lists a South Zone bag of 5 deer with no more than 2 bucks, and only one of those bucks may have an inside spread of 13 inches or more. The general season runs Nov. 7 through Jan. 17, with a special late season Jan. 18 through 31.

A Look Back: Ranches Before Roads

The Handbook of Texas records that families from northern Mexico were running ranches in this country by the middle of the 1700s, and the name Atascosa, Spanish for boggy, was in use by 1788. The large Atascosa River grant to José Antonio Navarro, first deeded in 1825 and recognized by Texas in 1853, opened wider settlement. The county was carved from Bexar County in 1856, and Pleasanton became county seat in 1858 on land donated by John Bowen.

Cattle carried the county after the Civil War. The Handbook counts 29,020 cattle in 1860 and 92,047 by 1870, the peak years of the trail drives, when livestock made up 75 percent of agricultural receipts. Pleasanton, on what is now U.S. Highway 281, became a gathering place for cowboys driving herds to Kansas. In 1966 locals began the Cowboy Homecoming to honor the town’s claim as the birthplace of the cowboy.

South Texas Land Market

The Texas Real Estate Research Center at Texas A&M groups Atascosa with Bexar, Comal, Guadalupe, Karnes and Wilson in one land market area within its South Texas region. In the second quarter 2026 report, the regional median was $6,225 an acre, up 0.99 percent, while sales jumped 26.18 percent to 400, the strongest growth of any Texas region. The typical tract was 308 acres. Distance to San Antonio, frontage, water and brush all move value tract by tract, so county comparables count for more than the regional figure.

Call Lee, Lee & Puckitt

Our firm’s record since 2003 includes more than 800,000 acres of ranch and farm land closed, worth more than $950 million, across 67 Texas and New Mexico counties, and we have sold ranch land since 1962. To talk about selling, buying or valuing brush country land, call our Brokers and Agents at 325.655.6989 or browse llpranchland.com.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who is a ranch Broker for Atascosa County land? Lee, Lee & Puckitt, based in San Angelo, works with ranch and farm owners across Texas, including South Texas brush country near Pleasanton and Jourdanton.

How do I find land for sale in Atascosa County? Start with the listings at llpranchland.com, then call 325.655.6989 with your acreage, budget and plans.

What makes the best ranch Broker for Atascosa County? Closed rural sales, knowledge of brush, water and deer value, and pricing built on real comparable sales.

When does the Atascosa County burn ban end? The order approved Aug. 24, 2026, runs through Nov. 22, 2026, unless commissioners lift it sooner. Texas A&M Forest Service data still listed it in effect on Nov. 11.

About Lee, Lee & Puckitt

Founded in 1962 in Bronte and now based in San Angelo, Lee, Lee & Puckitt is owned by partners who ranch. Our Brokers and Agents sell land, prepare appraisals and Broker’s Price Opinions and stand up for property owners.

Sources

Photo: Larry D. Moore, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Atascosa_county_courthouse.jpg). Cropped.

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