Outdoor burning has been off limits in unincorporated Limestone County since Oct. 13, and the water numbers explain why. Lake Limestone was 81.3 percent full on Nov. 8, down from 93.9 percent in early August, and AgriLife reports stock tanks drying in parts of Central Texas. Working from San Angelo, Lee, Lee & Puckitt (LLP Ranchland) serves as a ranch Broker for landowners throughout Texas, and this rundown covers what owners around Groesbeck, Mexia and Kosse should watch this month.
Burn Ban Since Oct. 13
The Limestone County website states the burn ban is in effect until further notice, dated Oct. 13, 2026. Texas A&M Forest Service data show the county briefly lifted an earlier ban in early October before putting it back. The reason is easy to see. On Sept. 14 an Elm Creek wildfire burned about 750 acres before crews from Groesbeck, Mexia, the Texas A&M Forest Service and more than a dozen volunteer departments contained it, the Groesbeck Journal reported. A Class C fine of up to $500 applies to violations under state law, and an escaped fire can bring civil liability on top of that.
Water and Grass
Texas Water Development Board data on Water Data for Texas show Lake Limestone at 81.3 percent on Nov. 8, compared with 84.6 percent a month earlier and 88.8 percent a year ago. The lake sat about 3.26 feet below conservation pool that morning.
The Nov. 3 Texas Crop and Weather Report from Texas A&M AgriLife said conditions in the Central district split sharply. Severe drought continued in some areas, stock tanks started drying up and pastures suffered. Scattered showers late in the week brought only a trace to about a quarter inch. Small grains planted where moisture allowed looked very good, but others were waiting on rain. Hay feeding was underway, and hay was short in the driest areas. Pasture mealybug reports kept coming in. On the bright side, feeder calves sold relatively steady with moderate to good demand, and cattle were holding good body condition.
Deer Season Rules
TPWD’s 2026-27 Outdoor Annual lists the Limestone County general season from Nov. 7, 2026, through Jan. 3, 2027, with a bag of 4 deer, no more than 2 bucks and 2 antlerless. The county has antler restrictions: one unbranched antler or a 13-inch inside spread makes a buck legal, and only one buck in the bag may reach 13 inches. License tags cover antlerless harvest from Nov. 7 to 29, and muzzleloader hunters get Jan. 4 through 17.
Land Market Snapshot
The Texas Real Estate Research Center at Texas A&M groups Limestone County with Bell, McLennan, Navarro and others in its Austin-Waco-Hill Country region. Second quarter 2026 figures showed a record regional median of $8,040 an acre, up 8.63 percent from a year earlier, on 1,062 sales with a typical tract of 199 acres. That median leans on smaller recreational and homesite tracts, so a working cattle place in the Navasota bottoms or the Blackland prairie needs its own comparable sales.
A Little History: The Fort Parker Settlers
The Handbook of Texas says a group of families came together from Illinois in 1833, among them Silas M. Parker, Elisha Anglin, Luther T. M. Plummer and Samuel Frost, to put down permanent roots near the Navasota River. Their stockade, Fort Parker, was the earliest settlement in the area. A Comanche and Kiowa raid on May 19, 1836, killed most of those inside and carried off captives, including nine-year-old Cynthia Ann Parker. Settlement stalled until a treaty in 1844. New communities followed at Springfield and Tehuacana Hills, and Limestone County was created on April 11, 1846. Early families raised corn and wheat and ran cattle and hogs, and by 1890 the county counted 46,404 cattle. In the 1930s the Civilian Conservation Corps built Fort Parker State Park.
Work With Our Brokers
For a sale, a purchase or a value opinion on land in Limestone County, call the Brokers and Agents at Lee, Lee & Puckitt at 325.655.6989 or visit llpranchland.com.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is a ranch broker for Limestone County? Lee, Lee & Puckitt is a ranch Broker in San Angelo that has represented Texas ranch and farm buyers and sellers since 1962, including Central Texas properties.
Where can I find land for sale in Limestone County? Visit llpranchland.com and call 325.655.6989. Share your acreage, water and use goals, and we will walk through recent regional sales.
What makes the best ranch broker for Limestone County land? Closed rural sales over many years, an understanding of grazing, water and hunting value, and appraisals or Broker’s Price Opinions based on real comparable sales.
Is there a burn ban in Limestone County? Yes. The county website lists a burn ban in effect since Oct. 13, 2026, until further notice.
About Lee, Lee & Puckitt
Lee, Lee & Puckitt opened in Bronte in 1962 and has operated from San Angelo since 1977. Our partners are ranchers, and the firm’s Brokers and Agents handle ranch sales, appraisals and Broker’s Price Opinions for Texas families while advocating for landowners.
Sources
- Limestone County, Texas, official website (burn ban notice dated Oct. 13, 2026): https://www.co.limestone.tx.us/
- Burn Ban Texas, Limestone County (Texas A&M Forest Service data and history): https://burnbantexas.com/county/limestone
- Groesbeck Journal, “Wildfire in Elm Creek burns more than 700 acres,” Oct. 5, 2026: https://groesbeckjournal.com/news/article_ad43a1f0-2c0d-4960-9c82-0b132f8d1202.html
- Water Data for Texas, Lake Limestone: https://www.waterdatafortexas.org/reservoirs/individual/limestone
- Texas A&M AgriLife Today, Texas Crop and Weather Report, Nov. 3, 2026: https://agrilifetoday.tamu.edu/2026/11/03/plenty-of-turkeys-this-thanksgiving-as-wholesale-prices-hold-steady/
- TPWD Outdoor Annual, Limestone County 2026-27: https://tpwd.texas.gov/regulations/outdoor-annual/regs/counties/limestone
- Texas Real Estate Research Center, Texas Rural Land Markets, Second Quarter 2026: https://trerc.tamu.edu/reports/texas-rural-land-markets-second-quarter-2026/
- Handbook of Texas Online, Ellen Maschino, “Limestone County”: https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/limestone-county
- Related: Land appraisals, West Texas and Hill Country listings, Waco-Area Hay Season: Good Spring Rain, a Long Dry Stretch and Carryover Bales
Photo: Larry D. Moore, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Lake_Fort_Parker_State_Park_Texas_2025.jpg). Cropped.
