North Carolina Weekly Crop Survey – August 16, 2026

Drought Impact Analysis From Extension Agents Across the State

Responses 42
Counties Mapped 43
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Drought Impact (County Reported)

Select a level to isolate it on the map.

Comment Signal

Worsening / crop stress intensifying
Some relief / conditions improving
Uneven rainfall / mixed conditions
Persistent drought / little change

Map of county-reported drought impact

Every county on this map is listed, grouped by impact level, at the end of this page under “View county data as a list”.

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Statewide Trends

Recent thunderstorms and spotty showers have improved surface moisture in many counties, but rainfall is uneven and not uniform statewide.
Hay and pasture production is behind in drought‑affected areas and some livestock producers are already providing supplemental feed.
Corn has experienced pollination problems and stress in several counties, with reduced yields expected where early drought was severe.
Tobacco is showing burn and heat stress in multiple counties, reflecting high temperatures and limited moisture in some areas.
Where irrigation or small‑scale water management is available (nurseries, urban plots), growers have been able to mitigate some drought impacts.

Top Statewide Concerns

  • reduced yields
  • low subsoil moisture
  • hay/feed shortages
  • uneven rainfall distribution
  • harvest delays and disease risk
  • heat stress on crops

Regional summaries

West / Mountains & Foothills

(Avery, Burke, Caldwell, Catawba, Gaston, Haywood, Henderson, Iredell, Macon, Madison, Yancey)

  • Mixed conditions: several counties report improvement after frequent afternoon thunderstorms, while Burke and Iredell remain in severe drought.
  • Late‑season impacts include poor corn pollination and reduced yields in some areas, and overly wet fields in others that complicate harvest and increase disease pressure.

Piedmont / Sandhills

(Anson, Cabarrus, Chatham, Cumberland, Davie, Forsyth, Hoke, Lee, Mecklenburg, Montgomery, Orange, Person, Richmond, Scotland, Stokes, Surry, Wake, Yadkin)

  • Widespread severe to extreme drought in multiple counties (including Forsyth, Person, Stokes, Cumberland), with localized rains providing limited relief.
  • Forage and hay production are behind and many early field crops show drought damage; high temperatures are adding stress and could worsen conditions.

North & Central Coastal Plain

(Camden, Craven, Franklin, Johnston, Martin, Pamlico, Warren, Wayne, Wilson)

  • Coastal plain contains pockets of extreme and severe drought (Craven, Warren) with reports of very low subsoil moisture restricting crop growth.
  • Tobacco and field crops are showing heat and moisture stress despite isolated thunderstorm totals in parts of the region.

Southeast Coastal Plain

(Bladen, Brunswick, Duplin, Pender, Sampson)

  • Most reporting counties are in severe drought (Bladen, Brunswick, Duplin) with spotty showers offering only limited, localized relief.
  • Crop development is slowed and stressed; some timely rains aided soybean and cotton in parts of the region while other areas remain dry.

County Comments Highlights (selected notes from impact and additional comments)

Craven
Frequent small rains are sustaining crops, but subsoil moisture is still extremely low.
Stokes
Hay production is behind due to lack of rain.
Bladen
Spotty showers kept soil moisture improving then drying again; central, southern, and southeastern areas received up to 2.5 inches, helping stressed soybeans and cotton, but it remains very dry county-wide.
Warren
Severe to extreme drought affects 100% of Warren County, severely depleting soil moisture, reducing crop yields for regional cash crops, and forcing early hay feeding and supplemental feed purchases due to dried pastures.
Davie
Rainfall has been plentiful; corn is in dough/dent stage, and soybeans are looking great with all the rain.
Johnston
Some of the hottest days of the summer with heat indexes to 110 degrees; small thunderstorms produced 0.4-2 inches of rain in some areas; we are still below normal for the year.
Sampson
Drought has been much alleviated in fields as growers begin the corn harvest, with some areas missing rains but many receiving timely rainfall this week.
Anson
Dry fields and pastures.
Macon
Stream levels remain low, soil moisture much improved, drought conditions improving; afternoon thunderstorms drop large rain amounts with runoff and less infiltration.
Mecklenburg
All growers have some mild to moderate drought effects, mitigated by small plots; nursery growers can irrigate; urban, community crops, hay & grain straw, and nursery sectors.
Yadkin
Conditions and water levels are improving with weekend rainfall; no widespread rain expected this week, but pop-up thunderstorms possible.
Yancey
Daily thunderstorms have brought 0.1–2.5 inches, delaying harvest, worsening disease control, hindering 2nd cut hay and cover crop establishment, and raising drought-early-year impact concerns for a very poor production year.

County analysis as a list

View county analysis as a list

Extreme Drought (4 counties)

  • Craven - Persistent drought / little change
  • Forsyth - Persistent drought / little change
  • Person - Worsening / crop stress intensifying
  • Stokes - Worsening / crop stress intensifying

Severe Drought (9 counties)

  • Bladen - Persistent drought / little change
  • Brunswick - Persistent drought / little change
  • Burke - Persistent drought / little change
  • Cumberland - Persistent drought / little change
  • Duplin - Worsening / crop stress intensifying
  • Iredell - Persistent drought / little change
  • Montgomery - Worsening / crop stress intensifying
  • Orange - Some relief / conditions improving
  • Warren - Persistent drought / little change

Moderate Drought (11 counties)

  • Catawba - Persistent drought / little change
  • Chatham - Some relief / conditions improving
  • Davie - Persistent drought / little change
  • Franklin - Persistent drought / little change
  • Johnston - Worsening / crop stress intensifying
  • Lee - Persistent drought / little change
  • Pender - Persistent drought / little change
  • Richmond - Persistent drought / little change
  • Sampson - Persistent drought / little change
  • Wake - Persistent drought / little change
  • Wilson - Persistent drought / little change

Abnormally Dry (11 counties)

  • Anson - Persistent drought / little change
  • Cabarrus - Some relief / conditions improving
  • Gaston - Persistent drought / little change
  • Haywood - Persistent drought / little change
  • Henderson - Persistent drought / little change
  • Hoke - Persistent drought / little change
  • Macon - Persistent drought / little change
  • Mecklenburg - Persistent drought / little change
  • Pamlico - Persistent drought / little change
  • Surry - Persistent drought / little change
  • Yadkin - Persistent drought / little change

No mapped response (8 counties)

  • Avery - Persistent drought / little change
  • Caldwell - Persistent drought / little change
  • Camden - Persistent drought / little change
  • Madison - Persistent drought / little change
  • Martin - Persistent drought / little change
  • Scotland - Persistent drought / little change
  • Wayne - Persistent drought / little change
  • Yancey - Persistent drought / little change

Note: Map reflects county-reported drought classifications from the August 16, 2026 survey. Comment signal summarizes the tone of county narrative responses. Counties without a clearly mapped report remain unshaded.