Some Texas Corn Farmers May Switch to Planting Cotton Due to Dry Conditions

Although corn and sorghum planting continues to progress across Texas, agronomists suggest that some farmers might switch from planting acres in corn and sorghum to cotton this year amidst continuing drought. 

West Central Texas

In West Central Texas, Reagan Noland, an assistant professor and extension agronomist for Texas A&M University, said, “Both corn and sorghum acreage will be extremely limited this year due to dry conditions and depleted irrigation water supplies.”

Noland said it is still a possibility for farmers to still plant grain sorghum through mid-April, “but it’s not likely unless it starts raining soon.”

Instead of growing dryland grain sorghum, Noland said many growers are likely to change plans and grow cotton instead as a result of the continued drought conditions in the region. “We haven’t received any rain in March,” Noland said, “and rainfall over the past several months has been very marginal.”

Coastal Bend Area

For growers in the Coastal Bend region of Texas, Joshua McGinty, associate professor and agronomist for Texas A&M University, said corn and sorghum planting has pretty much wrapped up at this point. 

“There are a few acres to the west that were simply too dry to plant,” McGinty said. Those acres that weren’t planted with corn and sorghum might possibly switch to cotton after a recent rainfall event, he said.

McGinty said it’s unlikely for farmers to plant those empty acres with corn or sorghum because the agronomic window for corn has passed, and planting sorghum this late would cause it to be at significant risk of midge damage.

Texas Panhandle

Texas A&M University Associate Professor and Extension Agronomist Jourdan Bell said that corn and sorghum planting hasn’t started in the Texas panhandle just yet. She said only a few acres of corn are likely to be planted in April, with the majority of the region’s crop getting planted from May to early June. 

“Few producers have irrigation capacities for longer maturing hybrids that are used when planting in April,” Bell said.

Sorghum planting has also not begun in the panhandle, Bell said, because soil temperatures are too cold in March and April for the crop. 

Texas High Plains

In the Texas High Plains, Calvin Trostle, professor and extension agronomist for Texas A&M University, said farmers haven’t begun the 2025 planting season.

With limited soil moisture levels a concern going into the planting season, Trostle said farmers should be sure to reduce their seeding densities. 

Corn Planting and Emergence Progress

The first emerged corn in Texas was reported week ending March 23. 

Twenty-three percent of the corn crop emerged, ahead of the five-year average by 1%. This is behind last year’s emerged corn by 11 percentage points. According to the USDA, the corn that’s emerged so far has been in the Upper Coast, the Blacklands, and South Texas regions.

With 45% of the corn planted in Texas, the state’s farmers are 1% ahead of the previous year’s planting numbers, and 2% ahead of the five-year average.

Sorghum Planting and Emergence Progress

Similar to corn, for the week ending March 23, the first emerged sorghum was reported in the USDA Crop Progress report for Texas. 

So far, 20% of the sorghum crop has emerged. The USDA has no reported data for sorghum emerging for this week from the previous year or the five-year average. 

Sorghum planted reached 37%, which is ahead of the previous year by 1 point, and 2 points ahead of the five-year average.