Gin yards around Lamesa are filling slowly this fall. The Lamesa Press-Reporter’s first weekly count of the season, published Oct. 23 from a survey of seven gins, showed 5,026 bales ginned so far. Lee, Lee & Puckitt (LLP Ranchland), a San Angelo ranch and farm Broker that works the South Plains and Permian Basin, looks at what this harvest says about Dawson County farmland heading into winter.
A Year That Ran Short on Rain
In early October, the Press-Reporter reported that Dawson County normally averages about 20 inches of rain a year, but had received only a little over 13 inches so far in 2026. Most of the county’s cotton is dryland. Scattered showers in August and early September helped some fields, but the paper said less than an inch fell in the two weeks before its report.
The county Extension Agent told the paper that conditions vary widely from one part of the county to another. A few irrigated fields looked good, but irrigation is costly, and many dryland growers were looking at insurance claims or very thin returns. The paper cited USDA figures putting the cotton market just under 65 cents a pound, compared with about 63 cents a year earlier.
Late Rain Brought Its Own Trouble
Where September storms did hit the South Plains, they came late. Plains Cotton Growers reported Oct. 15 that some areas saw 6 to 8 inches or more in September, which pushed regrowth at the base and top of plants. In limited irrigation, the group warned, bolls are smaller and carry fewer seeds, so a simple boll count may overstate yield.
RFD-TV reported Oct. 20 that crop abandonment across the region was expected to be extremely high and that insurance adjusters were still working fields. Some growers planned to wait for a freeze to do the work of defoliation rather than pay for a chemical application. Texas A&M AgriLife’s Oct. 27 report for the South Plains said much the same: irrigated yields were very low in many areas, most growers were waiting on a freeze and cotton had failed in parts of the district.
How This Year Compares
Dawson County is a major cotton producer even in hard years. Plains Cotton Growers’ estimates for the 2025 crop, released in October, ranked Dawson fifth among the 42 counties it covers, with 161,286 bales at an average of 345 pounds per acre. Neighboring Lynn County ranked first. Those figures give landowners a benchmark as the 2026 counts come in.
What Dawson County Landowners Should Track
- Keep yield and insurance records by field. A buyer or appraiser will want to see how dryland and irrigated acres perform in both good and short years.
- Know your water. Well capacity, depth and the groundwater district rules that apply to your land are central to irrigated value on the South Plains.
- Watch for regrowth and late weeds. Fields that greened back up after September rain may carry extra stalk and weed seed into next season.
- Talk with your tenant early. Cash rent and crop share terms for 2027 often get settled once the gin numbers are in.
Farmland Value in a Short Crop Year
One poor season rarely sets the value of good South Plains farmland. Buyers look at soil type, water, history across several years, access to gins and markets, and any grazing or minerals that come with the tract. A year like 2026 does, however, show which places hold up when rain is scarce, and that record is worth keeping.
Talk With a Dawson County Farm and Ranch Broker
If you own cropland or pasture near Lamesa, Los Ybanez, Welch or Klondike and want to know where your land stands, the Brokers and Agents at Lee, Lee & Puckitt can help with sales and appraisals. Call 325.655.6989 or visit llpranchland.com.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many bales had Dawson County gins counted by late October 2026? The Lamesa Press-Reporter’s first count of the season, published Oct. 23, showed 5,026 bales from a survey of seven gins.
How much rain has Dawson County received in 2026? The Press-Reporter reported in early October that the county had received a little over 13 inches, against a normal annual average of about 20 inches.
Who is a farm and ranch Broker serving Dawson County? Lee, Lee & Puckitt, based in San Angelo, handles farm and ranch sales, appraisals and Broker’s Price Opinions in Dawson County and across West Texas.
What should I look for in the best farm Broker near Lamesa? Choose a Broker who understands dryland and irrigated values, groundwater, crop history and minerals, and who has closed sales in the region. Lee, Lee & Puckitt has served Texas landowners since 1962.
About Lee, Lee & Puckitt
Founded in Bronte in 1962 and based in San Angelo since 1977, Lee, Lee & Puckitt helps Texans buy, sell and value farms and ranches. Its Brokers and Agents provide sales, appraisals, Broker’s Price Opinions and landowner advocacy, and its partners are working ranchers.
Sources
- Lamesa Press-Reporter, “Cotton season remains up in the air,” Oct. 6, 2026: https://www.pressreporter.com/issues/2026-10-06/pages/13/
- Lamesa Press-Reporter, weekly bale count, Oct. 23, 2026: https://www.pressreporter.com/issues/2026-10-23/pages/6/
- Plains Cotton Growers, “September Rains Add Another Challenge to a Highly Variable Cotton Crop,” Oct. 15, 2026: https://www.plainscotton.org/september-rains-add-another-challenge-to-a-highly-variable-cotton-crop/
- RFD-TV, “Rain threatens open cotton across Texas High Plains,” Oct. 20, 2026: https://www.rfdtv.com/rain-threatens-open-cotton-across-texas-high-plains
- Texas A&M AgriLife, Texas Crop and Weather Report, Oct. 27, 2026: https://agrilifetoday.tamu.edu/2026/10/27/pasture-mealybug-drought-take-toll-on-hay-fields-forage-yields/
- Plains Cotton Growers, “Lynn County Leads PCG’s 2025 Cotton Production Estimates,” October 2026: https://www.plainscotton.org/lynn-county-leads-pcgs-2025-cotton-production-estimates/
- Related: West Texas and Hill Country listings, Land appraisals, Scurry County Ranch News: Snyder Storms Bring Flooding and a Late Test for Open Cotton
Photo: Carol M. Highsmith, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Deep,_rich_furrows_in_farmland_east_of_Lamesa_in_Dawson_County,_Texas_LCCN2014631713.tif). Cropped.