AgricultureID

State · US-TX

Texas

Texas spans humid subtropical (Cfa) conditions in the east to semi-arid (BSk/BSh) and hot-desert (BWh) conditions in the west and far west, with rainfall declining steeply from east to west. This gradient underlies a shift from row crops in the east to ranching and irrigated cropping in the west.

Major crop systems

  • Cotton — the leading producing state, centred on the High Plains
  • Grain sorghum, wheat, and maize
  • Gulf Coast rice and Lower Rio Grande Valley citrus and winter vegetables

Major livestock systems

  • Beef cattle — the largest cattle inventory of any state, from cow–calf ranching to Panhandle feedlots
  • Sheep and meat/mohair goats on the Edwards Plateau
  • Broiler poultry in the east and expanding Panhandle dairy

Agricultural land: Texas has more land in farms and ranches than any other state; vast rangelands cover the west and center, with intensive cropping on the irrigated High Plains, the Blackland Prairie, the Gulf Coast, and the Lower Rio Grande Valley. Irrigation: Irrigation is important on the High Plains (Ogallala Aquifer) and in the Rio Grande valley, but much of the state is rainfed rangeland and dryland crop.

Agroecological zones: Cfa (Humid subtropical), BSk (Cold semi-arid (steppe)), BSh (Hot semi-arid (steppe)), BWh (Hot desert)

Documented crops & livestock

Official institutions

  • Texas Department of Agriculture — State department for agriculture, marketing, and regulatory programs.
  • Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service — Land-grant research and extension for crops, livestock, and range management.
  • 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 Texas are published by USDA NASS and the Texas 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.
  • Texas is climatically and agriculturally vast; a single profile spans humid eastern row crops, semi-arid western ranching, and irrigated High Plains and Rio Grande valley systems.

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