AgricultureID

State · US-IN

Indiana

Indiana is mostly hot-summer humid continental (Dfa), grading into humid subtropical (Cfa) along the Ohio River in the far south, with hot, humid summers and rain in all seasons. The frost-free season lengthens toward the south.

Major crop systems

  • Rainfed maize–soybean two-year rotation
  • Soft red winter wheat
  • Specialty crops including popcorn, processing tomatoes, and melons

Major livestock systems

  • Confined hogs — a leading state
  • Egg-layer poultry, ducks, and turkeys
  • Dairy and beef cattle

Agricultural land: Deep glacial-till and prairie soils of the central and northern till plains carry intensive row cropping, while the unglaciated south is more dissected and mixed in land use. Irrigation: Field crops are predominantly rainfed, with some irrigation on lighter soils in the northwest and on specialty crops.

Agroecological zones: Dfa (Hot-summer humid continental), Cfa (Humid subtropical)

Documented crops & livestock

Official institutions

  • Indiana State Department of Agriculture — State department for agriculture, soil conservation, and marketing.
  • Purdue Extension (Purdue University) — Land-grant research and extension for crops, livestock, and agribusiness.
  • USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) — Official state-level crop, livestock, and Census of Agriculture statistics, published through its regional field office network.

Data coverage & limitations

Descriptive profile; subnational statistics for Indiana are published by USDA NASS and the Indiana State Department of Agriculture and are not reproduced numerically here.

  • Boundaries and administrative classification follow the ISO 3166-2 subdivision system and USDA/state reporting units.
  • No subnational statistics are reproduced here; any official figures are dated, versioned, and periodically revised — read them with their year and source.
  • A statewide profile masks the contrast between the flat, intensively cropped central and northern till plains and the more mixed land use of the unglaciated south.

Agricultural authority

Verified against official government sources. AgricultureID is independent and not affiliated with these bodies.

  • Indiana State Department of Agriculture

    State · Department

    Indiana State Department of Agriculture is the first-order subnational public authority responsible for agriculture in Indiana.

    Official websiteAll agricultural authorities

Soils documented by the official survey

The soil survey maps 599 named soil bodies in Indiana, with surface pH from 4.2 to 8.2 and organic matter from 0.3% to 87.0%. The twenty appearing in the most mapped units are shown; each figure is the survey’s representative value for that soil body, not a measurement.

Soil bodies mapped in Indiana, with representative surface properties from the official survey
Soil bodypHOrganic matter %Clay %DrainageMap units
MiamiAlfisols5.9–6.81.5–2.756–29Moderately well drained to Well drained359in 44 survey areas
FoxAlfisols5.2–6.80.75–210–30Well drained200in 33 survey areas
GlynwoodAlfisols6.2–6.71–318–33Moderately well drained162in 21 survey areas
OckleyAlfisols to Inceptisols (the survey records both)6.1–70.75–29–30Well drained119in 35 survey areas
MartinsvilleAlfisols5.5–6.81.2–28–30Well drained117in 39 survey areas
CrosbyAlfisols5.8–7.22–2.514–19Somewhat poorly drained111in 29 survey areas
WellstonAlfisols to Ultisols (the survey records both)4.7–6.31–4.7514–20Well drained97in 21 survey areas
CincinnatiAlfisols5.5–6.20.5–215–28Moderately well drained to Well drained96in 26 survey areas
AlfordAlfisols5.5–5.90.75–2.0611–28Well drained94in 22 survey areas
BlountAlfisols6–6.52–2.519–25Somewhat poorly drained89in 27 survey areas
HoughtonHistosols765–84.50–5Very poorly drained84in 38 survey areas
MorleyAlfisols5.8–6.81–37–35Moderately well drained to Well drained84in 23 survey areas
RussellAlfisols6.2–6.30.75–516–28Well drained82in 20 survey areas
WhitakerAlfisols5.8–6.71.5–27–14Somewhat poorly drained75in 42 survey areas
HickoryAlfisols4.7–6.20.75–4.758–31Well drained72in 24 survey areas
RensselaerMollisols6.2–71.5–1512–32Poorly drained72in 34 survey areas
OshtemoAlfisols5.8–6.51.25–2.255–12Well drained71in 12 survey areas
RiddlesAlfisols6.5–6.81.5–27–15Well drained69in 15 survey areas
FincastleAlfisols5.6–6.21.5–2.514–19Somewhat poorly drained65in 30 survey areas
ShoalsInceptisols6.5–7.22.5–416–30Somewhat poorly drained65in 39 survey areas

These values describe soil bodies a survey has mapped, not samples taken in a particular field. A measurement on one farm may differ from the representative value of the map unit containing it.

AgricultureID does not infer crop suitability from soil observations. That a crop is grown where a soil occurs is not evidence that the soil suits it, and no such link is published without a source that makes it. How these observations are recorded.

Climate and drought

Drought assessment, week of 2026-08-25

assessment

0.0% of Indiana’s land area was assessed as being in drought (D1 or worse) for the week of 2026-08-25 to 2026-08-31.

No category
100.0%
D0 · not drought
0.0%
D1
0.0%
D2
0.0%
D3
0.0%
D4
0.0%

D0 is abnormally dry and is counted separately: the Drought Monitor treats it as a precursor to drought and a category areas pass through while recovering.

The Drought Monitor is drawn each week by an author who weighs several indicators together with reports from local observers. It is an assessment of conditions, not an instrument reading, and each map applies to one week.

Climate normals, 1991–2020

normal

36 stations in Indiana publish a full-standard 1991–2020 normal. Each describes its own site; none is an average for the state.

StationMean tempPrecipitationDays ≤ 32°F
ANGOLA, IN US48.3°F38.78 in145.1
BERNE WWTP, IN US50.8°F41.86 in121.1
BLOOMINGTON INDIANA UNIV, IN US53.3°F49.38 in108.6
BLUFFTON 6N, IN US50.1°F40.03 in126.0
BOONVILLE 1S, IN US57.3°F51.17 in89.7
COLUMBIA CITY, IN US49.5°F39.07 in134.4
COLUMBUS, IN US54.1°F47.34 in108.0
EVANSVILLE REGIONAL AP, IN US57.2°F47.91 in90.4

Eight of 36 stations shown.

A climate normal is what 1991–2020 averaged to at that station. It is not what any year was and not what any year will be; a season that matches it is ordinary, not forecast.

How these figures are produced, and what they do not say

Sources

This article draws on the following authoritative sources. See our sources & methodology for how they are selected.

  1. [1]USDA NASS — National Agricultural Statistics Service (opens in a new tab)

    USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS)

    Authoritative

    Cited for: Official state agricultural statistics

    Type:
    Government agency
    Jurisdiction:
    United States
    Accessed:
    2026-07-12
  2. [2]USDA — U.S. Department of Agriculture (opens in a new tab)

    United States Department of Agriculture (USDA)

    Authoritative

    Cited for: Federal agricultural context

    Type:
    Government agency
    Jurisdiction:
    United States
    Accessed:
    2026-07-12