Farmland Atlas · county record

Bath County, Virginia

Bath County, VA: non-irrigated cash rent $45 an acre (2026); land and buildings $4,314 an acre in the 2022 census. County averages from public records, not an appraisal of any farm. FIPS 51017. Figures as of 2026-09-20.

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Non-irrigated cash rent in Bath County averages $45 per acre in 2026, up 91.5 percent from 2016. Land and buildings carry a census value of $4,314 per acre, with that value up 17.3 percent from 2017 to 2022, 3.2 percent a year. July nights have averaged 62 F over 2017-2026, against a 1991-2020 normal of 60.7 F, and the July nightly low trend since 1976 runs 0.65 F per decade, warming. Heat and drought caused 55 percent of crop insurance indemnities from 1998-2024, and its share moved from 74 percent in 2000-2009 to 49 percent in 2010-2019 to 52 percent in 2020-2025.

Cash rent, non-irrigated
$45/ac
2026 county average
VA median $47 · tied for 40th lowest of 84
Land and buildings
$4,314/ac
2022: what operators guessed land and buildings were worth
VA median $4,596 · 39th lowest of 86
Rent as % of land value
—
not shown: cropland is 25% of land in farms (2022 census), so the census value is mostly pasture, woods and buildings, not cropland
Corn yield, median
—
fewer than 8 published county corn yields
Claims paid per $100 of coverage
—
under the premium floor for a figure
Farmland rented
16%
2022 census, rented from others
VA median 33% · 2nd lowest of 90

Cash rent

$0$10$20$30$402010201520202025$20$45 dry

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$45/ac
Change 2016 to 2026+91.5%nominal, $24 to $45
Pasture, 2026$35/ac

Land value

Land and buildings, 2022$4,314/acoperators' own estimate, not a sale price
Census 2012$4,166/ac
Census 2017$3,677/ac
Change 2017 to 2022+17.3%+3.2% a year, nominal
Dry rent ÷ census value— cropland is 25% of land in farms (2022 census), so the census value is mostly pasture, woods and buildings, not cropland

Corn yield

County corn yield— fewer than 8 published county corn yields

Crop insurance record

Claims paid divided by total premium (the farmer share plus the federal subsidy), each closed crop year since 1995. Above the dashed line, the county's insurance book paid out more than it took in. 2026, still open, is left out.

Largest causes of loss, 1998–2024heat and drought 55% · excess moisture 26% · other 10%share of dollars paid

Drought and weather

2000200520102015202020250149

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, 2000–202535 of 1,357 weeks3% of weeks
Year with the most D2+ weeks200214 weeks
Last five years, 2021–202520 weeks
July average of daily lows, 2017–202662.0 °F1991–2020 normal 60.7 °F
Trend in July lows since 1976+0.65 °F a decadewarming
Rain, April to September24.8 in1991–2020 normal; last ten years 109% of it
Days with hail 1 inch or larger0.5 a yearreports, 2010–2025; a zero is no report, not proof of no hail

Land, water and programs

Harvested cropland irrigated, 2022— NASS suppressed the irrigated acres to protect individual farms
Farmed no-till, 20229% of cropland787 ac
Cover crops, 20224% of cropland299 ac
198619911996200120062011201620210467116

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

CRP enrolled, 2025116 ac1.9% of harvested cropland + CRP
CRP expiring FY2026–202851 ac44% of enrolled acres
CRP average rental payment, FY2025$91/acall contracts in force, old ones included; not today's offer
Solar and wind operating, 20255 MW solar · 0 MW windnameplate, EIA Form 860
Cattle and calves, 20223,493−43.2% since 2017
Farmland rented from others, 202216%census tenure, owned plus rented acres in farms

Next door

CountyDry rentLand valueCorn yieldClaims per $100
Bath County$45$4,314——
Alleghany County$33$3,293——
Augusta County$105$7,594146.2$12.19
Highland County$30 2025$3,382——
Rockbridge County$33$5,763—$7.24
Greenbrier County, WV$51$3,317——
Pocahontas County, WV$37$3,089——
Median next door$37$3,350146.2 1 co.$9.72 2 co.

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. Bath County, Virginia. 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/virginia/bath-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.