April 21, 2000

Peanut production seems to have stabilized in Comanche County, where the commodity declined as a result of th 1996 farm bill and when the subsequent drop in price from $6.78 to $6.10 made it unprofitable for many farmers there.

Some suggest the result has actually been beneficial in the sense that dryland production is now concentrated on the best sandy land, irrigated peanuts are watered with the best quality water, and the reduced crop means more land for rotation. The result—in 1999, yields approached 5,000 pounds per acre.

"I have to say that from the De Leon area north, where water is limited, we have not seen a drop in dryland peanuts. Unfortunately, they have had to rely on insurance, but there are still a lot of peanuts centered from De Leon to Duster to Dublin," says Bob Whitney, Comanche County Extension agent. "We have not lost our infrastructure. We still shell a lot of peanuts here."

Much of the peanut production has relocated to Gaines County, around Seminole, where some growers have sought a fresh start in "fresh" soil, free of the nematodes that tend to build up from years of intensive peanut production. But that is likely to slow down. According to Whitney, the most peanut quota that can leave a county is 40 percent, and Comanche County may be nearing that after a recent drawing.

"A lot of our farmers were old enough and close to retirement. Some are leasing quota. Others are putting the land in grass and grazing cattle. Some are growing forage crops and selling to dairies, mostly on a smaller scale. We’ve seen a lot more leases for hunting, a lot more coastal, and a lot more cattle," Whitney reported. "You could say we lost an economy, and it’s hurt, but if you talk to businesses here they will tell you it is being replaced by these other things. In fact, one of our best agriculture years was last year. Sales were $135 million, which was mostly dairy. $75 million was in milk sales and the rest was feed sales and stuff like that. We grow a lot of corn silage, and that has increased again this year."

Whitney noted that several chemical applicators who were worried about the negative impact of the loss of peanut production are benefitting from more applications of fertilizer on coastal.

"It’s just a change," Whitney added.

A number of seminars and grower meetings have been held in Comanche County over the past few years for the purpose of exploring alternative crops, such as fruits, melons, and berries, and learning how to market them. Some of the county’s more acidic soils have attracted interest from some Tyler rose producers wanting local growers to supply them with additional blooms. A number of full- and part-time farmers, along with some early retirees moving to the area from the Fort Worth-Dallas area, plan to engage in truck farming. Strawberries, thornless blackberries, and green onions are just a few crops under consideration, especially by those with small acreages. Still, the transition to other crops has been slow. Whitney believes that is largely due to the weather.