Cattle prices near Denver County, Colorado. The closest sale barn with a recent report is Brush in Brush, CO, about 74 miles away. On Nov 13, 5-weight steers (500–599 lb) averaged $435.27 per hundredweight on 99 head (USDA). Check a bid against your own costs with Ring Price.
CRP emergency haying & grazing: Denver County is on FSA's list (since Sep 1, 2026). Check with your FSA county office first. Details · FSA list as of Nov 5, 2026.
On the Nov 10 U.S. Drought Monitor map, most of Denver County, CO was in severe drought (D2), and D2-or-worse drought has held there 50 weeks running. Denver County has had 92% of its normal rain in the past 30 days and 127% over 90 days, so the past month has been drier than the season so far; the NWS forecast peaks at a 52% rain chance on Friday (high 58°) and the 6-10 day outlook for Nov 20–24 leans wetter than normal (50% chance of above-normal rain). Denver County is on FSA's 2026 LFP list with up to 4 monthly payments, and the nearest USDA-reported sale barn is Brush, 74 miles away.
Rain vs normal
Last 30 days92% of normal
Last 60 daysnot read yet
Last 90 days127% of normal
NOAA river forecast center rain (radar plus gauges) at the county center, Nov 15, 2026. Source.
Rain outlook
6-10 day outlook (Nov 20–24)Leans wetter than normal (50% chance of above-normal rain)
8-14 day outlook (Nov 22–28)Leans wetter than normal (33% chance of above-normal rain)
NOAA Climate Prediction Center precipitation outlook, issued Nov 14, 2026. Source.
Next 7 days
Today Areas Of Fog then Sunny, high 59°, low 34°, 0% rain, wind 2–6 mph
The 2027 Pasture, Rangeland, Forage (PRF) insurance sales closing date for Denver County is Dec 1, 2026, 16 days from today. PRF (Rainfall Index) pays on a rainfall index for your grid, not on your own rain gauge. You buy it through a crop insurance agent.
Date from USDA RMA's actuarial data, read Aug 28, 2026 · RMA dates map. Your agent confirms the date for your policy.
Denver County grass production
Grass production for Denver County: not read yet.
Open loss windows
No open loss windows in Denver County right now. A 30-day window opens when the county first hits severe drought (D2), jumps to D3 or D4, or after a blizzard, extreme heat or cold, flood or ice warning, a wildfire, or a USDA disaster designation. Keep a Drought Ledger.
Information only; not financial, tax or legal advice. FSA decides eligibility. Cownty sends nothing to FSA.
Drought-sale tax flag IRS list
Denver County is on IRS Notice 2026-54 (severe or worse drought, Sep 1, 2025 to Aug 31, 2026).
Why it matters: if you sold breeding, dairy or draft livestock because of drought, the tax code may let you put off the gain (more time to buy replacement animals, or report the extra-sale income a year later). Your tax preparer decides whether either applies.
Each line is one barn's head-weighted average for 5-weight steers (500–599 lb) in that week; gaps are weeks with no sale or no lots that size. Past sales, not a bid.
Dollars per hundredweight ($/cwt, per 100 lb), calculated from USDA AMS Market News sale reports (Medium & Large 1 and 1-2). Not a USDA-published average. ≈ $/head = $/cwt × the middle of the weight class ÷ 100.
100% of the county in severe drought or worse, 50 weeks running.
How to read this
Each band is how much of the county was in that drought level that week. Darker = worse. D2 (severe) and darker can trigger USDA drought pay.
Right now: 100% of the county is in severe drought or worse; some of it has been for 50 weeks running. Source: U.S. Drought Monitor, map of Nov 10, 2026.
"Declared" means USDA named this county. "Neighboring" means it touches a declared county. Either way, FSA emergency loans can open for about 8 months. FSA designation files (dated Oct 19, 2026). Fetched Nov 9, 2026.
Open Denver County is on FSA's emergency haying and grazing list, starting Sep 1, 2026. Trigger: D2 (severe) drought on the Drought Monitor. Get an updated conservation plan from FSA before cutting or turning out.
Before haying and grazing, contact your FSA county office to see if your county remains eligible and/or obtain a modified conservation plan. This list is cumulative for the year and current local conditions may have changed.
Data pending. animal-health alerts are read for Texas (TAHC) and Oklahoma, Kansas and New Mexico (state ag departments); Colorado's state veterinarian isn't read yet
Forecast from the National Weather Service, updated Nov 15, 2026 old. Wind arrows point where the wind is going; the letters say where it comes from. Windy = 25 mph or more; freeze = a low of 32°F or less. Open the full forecast.
Burn ban
Data pending. Cownty doesn't read an official statewide burn-ban list for Colorado; county commissions, sheriffs and fire districts post local fire restrictions, so check your county's own notices
No official ban list to check here, so Cownty shows the National Weather Service fire-weather alerts for the county instead: none right now.
National Weather Service active alerts for this county, as of Nov 15, 2026 (source). Fetched Nov 15, 2026.
Rainfall vs normal
Oct 2026
0.85 in 86% of normal
Last 12 months
9.95 in 66%
How to read this
Bars are the rain that fell each month; the dashed line is a normal month (1991-2020 average). Bars below the line = drier than normal.
County-average precipitation, Nov 2025 to Oct 2026. Normal = NCEI's own 1991-2020 average for each month (Oct 2026 normal 0.99 in; same month last year 0.44 in). NCEI posts each month around the 8th of the next and may revise recent months. Source: NOAA NCEI Climate at a Glance. Fetched Nov 14, 2026.
Wildfires
No current fire perimeter in the county
Nearest current perimeter: Willow (Wildfire, CO), about 88 mi from the county center; 7,259 acres, 92% contained, perimeter of Sep 16, 2026.
Interagency fire outlines. Small or brand-new fires are often not mapped yet; call 911 for a fire you can see. Layer updated Nov 15, 2026. Source: National Interagency Fire Center. Fetched Nov 15, 2026.
Frost dates
Frost and freeze dates
30-year averages (1991–2020) from the weather stations nearest Denver County. Frost = 32°F; hard freeze = 28°F.
Set nationally by FSA; the same in every county. Effective Nov 1, 2026. Source: FSA current loan interest rates. Fetched Nov 9, 2026.
Farm program payments by crop (ARC and PLC)
ARC pays when county crop revenue falls below its guarantee. PLC pays when the national price falls below the reference price. You picked one per crop when you enrolled.
2026 program year guarantees onlyFSA file of Jan 16, 2026
Crop
Guarantee
Most it can pay
Corn
$508.47
$67.80
Sunflower Seed
$124.90
$16.65
Wheat
$213.34
$28.44
Show the math
Crop
Benchmark yield × price
Benchmark revenue
Corn
112.32 bushel/ac × $5.03
$564.97
Sunflower Seed
552.45 pound/ac × $0.25
$138.78
Wheat
33.96 bushel/ac × $6.98
$237.04
Dollars per base acre, before the 85% payment-acre factor and sequestration. Source: FSA ARC-CO 2026 county data.
2025 program year final payment ratesFSA file of Nov 2, 2026
Crop
Guarantee
Actual revenue
ARC payment
Barley
$389.35
$495.77
$0.00
Corn
$632.20
$173.89
$84.29
Grain Sorghum
$112.91
$104.89
$8.02
Oats
$184.90
$132.14
$24.65
Sunflower Seed
$138.92
$279.27
$0.00
Wheat
$227.29
$182.16
$30.30
Show the math
Crop
Benchmark yield × price
Benchmark revenue
Barley
70.92 bushel/ac × $6.10
$432.61
Corn
139.65 bushel/ac × $5.03
$702.44
Grain Sorghum
23.67 bushel/ac × $5.30
$125.45
Oats
53.5 bushel/ac × $3.84
$205.44
Sunflower Seed
614.99 pound/ac × $0.25
$154.36
Wheat
36.18 bushel/ac × $6.98
$252.54
Dollars per base acre, before the 85% payment-acre factor and sequestration. Source: FSA ARC-CO 2025 county data.
PLC, 2026 FSA table of Oct 30, 2026
Crop
Reference price
Season avg price
PLC payment
Wheat /bushel
$6.35
$6.30 projected
$0.05projected
Barley /bushel
$5.58
$5.70 projected
$0.00projected
Oats /bushel
$3.05
$3.35 projected
$0.00projected
Corn /bushel
$4.42
$4.70 projected
$0.00projected
Grain Sorghum /bushel
$4.67
$4.50 projected
$0.17projected
Soybeans /bushel
$10.71
$12.00 projected
$0.00projected
PLC rates are national (paid on the farm's PLC yield). Source: FSA 2026 PLC table. FSA decides who is paid.
FSA payments in Denver County
$121,333
4 payments dated Jan 29, 2025 to Jul 3, 2025 (FSA payment file 2025).
Program
Year
Total
Marketing Assistance For Specialty Crops
2025
$121,333
County totals only: Cownty sums FSA's public payment file by county and never stores names or addresses. FSA files payments under its administrative county (Denver), which may differ from where the land is. Source: FSA payment file via the FOIA reading room.
Colorado statewide, not just your county. Wheat planting is on pace with normal (99% vs 98%). From USDA's weekly Crop Progress report, week ending Nov 8, 2026.
Condition
Poor or very poor
Fair
Good or excellent
Winter Wheat
12%
44%
44%
Progress
Colorado
This week
Last week
Normal (5-yr avg)
Winter Wheat Planted
99%
99%
98%
Winter Wheat Emerged
90%
81%
87%
Sorghum Harvested
80%
65%
83%
Corn Harvested
77%
65%
79%
Source: USDA NASS Crop Progress released Nov 9, 2026 (ESMIS), Colorado rows. Week ending Nov 8, 2026. Fetched Nov 9, 2026.
Emergency Assistance for Livestock, Honeybees and Farm-raised Fish (ELAP): notice of loss, application and papers for 2026 losses are due by this date.
Source: Texas A&M AgriLife · link checked Nov 15, 2026
Link only. Cownty doesn't copy or check this content; follow the source.
When to pull cattle off wheat
Grazing past first hollow stem cuts grain yield. Oklahoma State's guide explains how to check a field, and its yearly trial reports first-hollow-stem dates by variety.
These barns are not in a USDA AMS report, so Cownty shows no prices for them. Sale days and phones come from the barns' own sites or public listings; call the barn to confirm. More barns
Yes. Denver County is on FSA's 2026 Livestock Forage Disaster Program county list, with up to 4 monthly payments for some pasture types. FSA decides each operation's eligibility; apply at your county FSA office by March 1 after the loss year.
What is the drought level in Denver County this week?
On the Drought Monitor map of Nov 10, 2026, most of Denver County was in severe drought (D2), and the worst part was severe drought (D2) on 100% of the county. 50 straight weeks with some severe drought (D2) or worse.
No official statewide list to check: Cownty doesn't read an official statewide burn-ban list for Colorado; county commissions, sheriffs and fire districts post local fire restrictions, so check your county's own notices.
What sale barns are near Denver County?
The nearest USDA-reported sale barns: Brush (74 mi), last report Nov 13, 2026; Sterling (107 mi), last report Nov 11, 2026; La Junta LJLC (142 mi), last report Nov 11, 2026.
Source: USDA AMS Market News reports
What are the upcoming FSA and farm deadlines?
Next: Nov 20, 2026: Colorado EQIP/CSP/RCPP/ACEP application ranking cutoff (FY 2027); Nov 20, 2026: Micro Farm 2027: last day to buy crop insurance. FSA program dates not posted officially are marked "confirm at source" on the calendar.
Source: official agency pages (see Calendar)
Information only; not financial or legal advice. FSA decides eligibility. Always check the linked official source.
