Farmland Atlas · county record

Prowers County, Colorado

Prowers County, CO: non-irrigated cash rent $34 an acre (2026); land and buildings $1,393 an acre in the 2022 census; median corn yield 159.3 bu/ac. County averages from public records, not an appraisal of any farm. FIPS 08099. Figures as of 2026-09-20.

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Non-irrigated cash rent in Prowers County runs $34 per acre, irrigated $154 per acre. Crop insurance indemnities for 1989-2025 closed crop years total $263.1 million, with heat and drought the largest cause at 44 percent. That share moved 35 percent in 1989-1999, 45 percent in 2000-2009, 41 percent in 2010-2019, and 48 percent in 2020-2025. The county spent 466 of 1357 weeks in severe drought or worse from 2000-2025, with 2013 the worst year at 53 weeks; 2021-2025 alone logged 79 such weeks. July nightly lows sit at 63 F for 2017-2026, matching the 1991-2020 normal of 63 F. Census value of land and buildings reached $1,393 per acre in 2022, up 72.8 percent from 2017-2022.

Cash rent, non-irrigated
$34/ac
2026 county average
CO median $30 · 9th highest of 24
Cash rent, irrigated
$154/ac
2026 county average
CO median $155 · 15th lowest of 30
Land and buildings
$1,393/ac
2022: what operators guessed land and buildings were worth
CO median $2,765 · 9th lowest of 58
Corn yield, 2008–2024 median
159.3 bu/ac
8 published years
Claims paid per $100 of coverage
$30.22
2016–2025, closed crop years
CO median $13.57 · 3rd highest of 31
Farmland rented
34%
2022 census, rented from others
CO median 30% · 19th highest of 57

Cash rent

$0$50$100$1502010201520202025$28$34 dry$80$154 irrigated

Dollars per acre, USDA NASS county survey. A break in a line is a year with no published survey; nothing is drawn across it.

Non-irrigated, 2026$34/ac
Irrigated, 2026$154/ac
Pasture, 2026$7/ac

Land value

Land and buildings, 2022$1,393/acoperators' own estimate, not a sale price
Census 2012$687/ac
Census 2017$806/ac
Change 2017 to 2022+72.8%+11.6% a year, nominal
Dry rent ÷ census value— NASS published no non-irrigated cash rent for this county in 2022

Corn yield

200820102012201420162018202020222024131.0152.0128.4158.5166.7170.1160.2187.8median 159.3

Bushels per acre, USDA NASS county yields, all practices. The dashed line is the median of the published years.

Median, 2008–2024159.3 bu/ac8 published years
Lowest published year2011: 128.4 bu/ac81% of median

Crop insurance record

1996200120062011201620212.874.180.651.00: claims equal premium

Claims paid divided by total premium (the farmer share plus the federal subsidy), each closed crop year since 1989. Above the dashed line, the county's insurance book paid out more than it took in. 2026, still open, is left out.

Claims paid per $100 of coverage, 2016–2025$30.22
Loss ratio, 2016–20251.09claims ÷ total premium
Loss ratio, 1989–20251.26$263.1 million paid
Years claims exceeded premium16 of 30
Worst year2002ratio 4.18
Largest causes of loss, 1989–2025heat and drought 44% · irrigation failure 25% · wind 13%share of dollars paid

Drought and weather

2000200520102015202020250530

Weeks per year, U.S. Drought Monitor, with half the county or more in D2 (severe) drought or worse.

D2 or worse for half the county, 2000–2025466 of 1,357 weeks34% of weeks
Year with the most D2+ weeks201353 weeks
Last five years, 2021–202579 weeks
July average of daily lows, 2017–202663.0 °F1991–2020 normal 63.0 °F
Trend in July lows since 1976+0.07 °F a decadeno clear direction
Rain, April to September12.5 in1991–2020 normal; last ten years 104% of it
Days with hail 1 inch or larger3.6 a yearreports, 2010–2025; a zero is no report, not proof of no hail

Land, water and programs

Harvested cropland irrigated, 2022— NASS published no harvested cropland for this county
Drained by tile, 20221% of cropland2,728 ac
Farmed no-till, 202211% of cropland40,298 ac
Cover crops, 20221% of cropland2,487 ac
1986199119962001200620112016202146,467173,790166,516

Acres enrolled in the Conservation Reserve Program, USDA FSA, by fiscal year.

CRP enrolled, 2025166,516 ac
CRP expiring FY2026–20283,911 ac2% of enrolled acres
CRP average rental payment, FY2025$23/acall contracts in force, old ones included; not today's offer
Solar and wind operating, 20250 MW solar · 243 MW windnameplate, EIA Form 860
Cattle and calves, 2022113,535+17.8% since 2017
Farmland rented from others, 202234%census tenure, owned plus rented acres in farms

Next door

CountyDry rentIrr. rentLand valueClaims per $100
Prowers County$34$154$1,393$30.22
Baca County$31$123 2023$1,682$27.77
Bent County$18$178$1,087$34.41
Kiowa County$29—$1,238$23.93
Greeley County, KS$49—$1,795$17.36
Hamilton County, KS$34$157 2025$1,478$22.74
Stanton County, KS$33$101$1,446$21.15
Median next door$32$140 2 co.$1,462$23.34

Counties that share a stretch of boundary. An older rent carries its year and stays out of the median.

Cite this page

AGSIST Farmland Atlas. Prowers County, Colorado. Figures as of 2026-09-20, from USDA NASS, USDA RMA, USDA FSA, the U.S. Drought Monitor and NOAA. https://agsist.com/farmland-atlas/colorado/prowers-county
Every figure is a county average from the sources named below. Ranks count counties with 10,000 acres or more in farms, in the same survey year for rent, within the state. Methods: how each figure is built. Downloads: all counties, CSV.
Sources, dates and arithmetic

"Figures as of" is the date this page's numbers last changed; it moves only when a figure on the page does. Source files and their retrieval dates are listed on the data page.

Rent: USDA NASS Cash Rents Survey, county. Land value: Census of Agriculture, operators' estimate of land and buildings. Yield: NASS county corn yields, trend fitted here over every published year since 2008. Loss ratio: claims (indemnity) divided by total premium, USDA RMA Summary of Business, 1989 on, open crop year left out. Drought: U.S. Drought Monitor, weeks with half the county or more in D2 or worse. July lows: NOAA nClimDiv county monthly minimum temperature. A dash means the record does not carry the figure or the source withheld it; the reason is printed beside it.