North Carolina Weekly Crop Survey – August 30, 2026

Drought Impact Analysis From Extension Agents Across the State

Responses 37
Counties Mapped 39
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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

Rainfall has been uneven statewide, with recent showers providing spotty relief but failing to restore subsoil moisture in several counties.
Pastures and hay reports indicate reduced yields and lower-quality forage across multiple regions.
Corn and soybean yields are reported as reduced in areas that experienced prolonged dryness earlier in the season.
Tobacco and other row crops show continued stress in counties classified as Moderate to Extreme Drought.
Water supplies and streamflows are low in several counties, raising concerns about irrigation and reservoir levels.

Top Statewide Concerns

  • subsoil moisture deficits
  • reduced hay and forage yields
  • low streamflows and reservoirs
  • spotty, uneven rainfall
  • localized extreme drought pockets
  • reduced corn and soybean yields

Regional summaries

West / Mountains & Foothills

(Buncombe, Macon, Madison, Swain)

  • Most mountain and foothill reports are Abnormally Dry or have no mapped response, with counties like Macon and Madison noting dryness.
  • Streamflows remain low in Macon and recent drier weeks followed earlier above-average rainfall; dry conditions are reappearing in some areas.

Piedmont / Sandhills

(Anson, Cabarrus, Caswell, Chatham, Cumberland, Davie, Durham, Forsyth, Hoke, Lee, Montgomery, Moore, Orange, Person, Randolph, Richmond, Stokes, Surry, Yadkin)

  • Many counties report Moderate Drought, with Severe and Extreme classifications in Montgomery, Forsyth, Person, and Stokes.
  • Timely rains have helped some areas and allowed extra hay cuttings, but forage and crop yields are still reduced from earlier drought.
  • Rainfall distribution is uneven across the region, producing variable local conditions and ongoing pasture stress.

North & Central Coastal Plain

(Craven, Edgecombe, Franklin, Halifax, Hertford, Martin, Pamlico, Wayne, Wilson)

  • Craven is classified Extreme Drought despite adequate upper-soil moisture for some crops; subsoil moisture is reported much below normal.
  • Halifax is Severe Drought (western half very dry); other counties range from Moderate to Abnormally Dry, with water tables low in places such as Wilson.
  • Earlier steady rains improved conditions in some counties, but retained moisture is being lost through August without steady precipitation.

Southeast Coastal Plain

(Brunswick, Columbus, Duplin, Onslow, Pender, Robeson, Sampson)

  • Severe Drought is reported in Brunswick and Robeson; other counties are Moderate or Abnormally Dry.
  • Scattered, hit-or-miss showers are providing partial relief in places, but drought damage from earlier in the season persists.
  • Most crops are beyond critical moisture periods and are receiving only sporadic support from localized storms.

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

Craven
Adequate to excessive rainfall has produced excellent upper soil moisture for peanut, sweet potato, soybean, pastures and cotton; subsoil moisture remains well below normal.
Forsyth
Stokes farmers are still in an extreme drought, resulting in crop decline, while Forsyth county seems to be receiving more rainfall than Stokes.
Robeson
Hit-or-miss showers provided marginal relief in some areas, while wide-range precipitation fell across the county this past week.
Columbus
Most crops are through critical moisture periods, and scattered storms are supporting them.
Davie
Corn and soybeans are doing well with no drought impacts at this time.
Edgecombe
Crops look much better than June and July; steady rain last month helped, but we’re losing retained moisture due to lack of steady rain in August.
Franklin
Has turned off very dry again, affecting soybean pod set.
Wilson
Timely rain continues, but the water table remains low; with upper 90s temps this week, topsoil water will be used or evaporated.
Sampson
Drought may be impacting minor areas where rainfall has been spotty; sandier soils could see more impacts, but there have been heavy rains.

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

Severe Drought (4 counties)

  • Brunswick - Persistent drought / little change
  • Halifax - Persistent drought / little change
  • Montgomery - Worsening / crop stress intensifying
  • Robeson - Worsening / crop stress intensifying

Moderate Drought (15 counties)

  • Anson - Persistent drought / little change
  • Caswell - Worsening / crop stress intensifying
  • Chatham - Persistent drought / little change
  • Columbus - Persistent drought / little change
  • Cumberland - Some relief / conditions improving
  • Davie - Persistent drought / little change
  • Durham - Persistent drought / little change
  • Edgecombe - Persistent drought / little change
  • Franklin - Persistent drought / little change
  • Hoke - Worsening / crop stress intensifying
  • Lee - Persistent drought / little change
  • Moore - Some relief / conditions improving
  • Orange - Persistent drought / little change
  • Pender - Persistent drought / little change
  • Wilson - Persistent drought / little change

Abnormally Dry (13 counties)

  • Cabarrus - Persistent drought / little change
  • Duplin - Some relief / conditions improving
  • Hertford - Persistent drought / little change
  • Macon - Persistent drought / little change
  • Madison - Worsening / crop stress intensifying
  • Martin - Worsening / crop stress intensifying
  • Pamlico - Persistent drought / little change
  • Randolph - Persistent drought / little change
  • Richmond - Persistent drought / little change
  • Sampson - Some relief / conditions improving
  • Surry - Persistent drought / little change
  • Swain - Persistent drought / little change
  • Yadkin - Persistent drought / little change

No mapped response (3 counties)

  • Buncombe - Persistent drought / little change
  • Onslow - Persistent drought / little change
  • Wayne - Persistent drought / little change

Note: Map reflects county-reported drought classifications from the August 30, 2026 survey. Comment signal summarizes the tone of county narrative responses. Counties without a clearly mapped report remain unshaded.