Nelson County, Kentucky
Nelson County, KY: non-irrigated cash rent $180 an acre (2026); land and buildings $5,930 an acre in the 2022 census. County averages from public records, not an appraisal of any farm. FIPS 21179. Figures as of 2026-09-20.
Non-irrigated cash rent in Nelson County averages $180 per acre in 2026, up 23.3 percent from 2016. Land carries a census value of $5,930 per acre, up 46 percent from 2017 to 2022. Cropland here is entirely non-irrigated, with 0 percent of harvested cropland under irrigation in the 2022 census. Heat and drought account for 54 percent of crop insurance indemnities paid out from 1989-2025, with the share running 62 percent in 1989-1999, 57 percent in 2000-2009, 48 percent in 2010-2019, and 60 percent in 2020-2025. The July nightly low has moved from a 66.1 F normal (1991-2020) to 67.5 F over 2017-2026, with a long-term trend of 0.33 F per decade and no clear direction since 1976.
KY median $125 · tied for 13th highest of 86
KY median $4,449 · 20th highest of 114
KY median $8.45 · 31st lowest of 86
KY median 25% · 40th highest of 115
Cash rent
Dollars per acre, USDA NASS county survey. A break in a line is a year with no published survey; nothing is drawn across it.
Land value
Corn yield
Crop insurance record
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.
Drought and weather
Weeks per year, U.S. Drought Monitor, with half the county or more in D2 (severe) drought or worse.
Land, water and programs
Acres enrolled in the Conservation Reserve Program, USDA FSA, by fiscal year.
Next door
| County | Dry rent | Land value | Corn yield | Claims per $100 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nelson County | $180 | $5,930 | — | $7.00 |
| Anderson County | $73 | $5,426 | — | — |
| Bullitt County | $83 | $7,883 | 141.9 | $10.14 |
| Hardin County | $142 | $5,886 | 159.8 | $5.63 |
| Larue County | $181 | $5,124 | — | $5.37 |
| Marion County | $173 | $4,582 | 153.0 | $9.13 |
| Spencer County | $122 | $6,499 | — | $8.01 |
| Washington County | $62 | $4,727 | — | $9.46 |
| Median next door | $122 | $5,426 | 153.0 | $8.57 |
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. Nelson County, Kentucky. 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/kentucky/nelson-countyEvery 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.