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Pike County, AR

Cattle prices near Pike County, Arkansas. The closest sale barn with a recent report is Hope in Hope, AR, about 34 miles away. On Nov 12, 5-weight steers (500–599 lb) averaged $385.32 per hundredweight on 24 head (USDA). Check a bid against your own costs with Ring Price.

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Change county
CRP emergency haying & grazing: Pike 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.
Drought ExceptionalD4 · most of county Drought pay (LFP) Eligibleup to 5 payments Burn ban Checkcall the county Hope 5-wt steers $385▲ $21 since last sale

Pike County rain, outlook and forecast

As of the Nov 10 Drought Monitor, most of Pike County, AR was in exceptional drought (D4), and D2-or-worse drought has held there 11 weeks running. Rain has run 22% of normal over the last 30 days (well below normal) and 28% over 90 days; the 6-10 day outlook for Nov 20–24 leans wetter than normal (40% chance of above-normal rain) and the best rain chance this week is 47% on Saturday (high 72°). FSA's 2026 LFP list includes Pike County with up to 5 monthly payments, and the nearest USDA-reported sale barn is Hope, 34 miles away.

Rain vs normal

  • Last 30 days 22% of normal
  • Last 60 days 23% of normal
  • Last 90 days 28% 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 (40% 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

  1. Today Mostly Cloudy then Slight Chance Rain Showers, high 52°, low 40°, 15% rain, wind 5 mph
  2. Monday Sunny, high 61°, low 36°, 0% rain, wind 5 mph
  3. Tuesday Sunny, high 63°, low 38°, 0% rain, wind 0–5 mph
  4. Wednesday Sunny, high 68°, low 47°, 1% rain, wind 0–5 mph
  5. Thursday Partly Sunny, high 70°, low 49°, 6% rain, wind 0 mph
  6. Friday Sunny, high 73°, low 50°, 3% rain, wind 0–5 mph
  7. Saturday Mostly Sunny then Slight Chance Rain Showers, high 72°, low 52°, 47% rain, wind 0–5 mph

National Weather Service forecast for the county center, updated Nov 15, 2026. Wind, warnings and burn bans.

PRF pasture insurance: sign up by Dec 1, 2026

The 2027 Pasture, Rangeland, Forage (PRF) insurance sales closing date for Pike 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.

How PRF works · PRF 2027 sign-up · Find your grid on RMA's PRF tool

Date from USDA RMA's actuarial data, read Aug 28, 2026 · RMA dates map. Your agent confirms the date for your policy.

Pike County grass production

In 2025, grassland and pasture in Pike County grew about 2,580 pounds per acre of grass and forbs, 120% of the county's 1991-2020 normal of 2,156 pounds per acre. That was the 3rd best of 40 years on record (1986-2025). Best year: 2024 at 2,732 pounds per acre; worst: 1986 at 1,139.

Pounds per acre of new grass and forbs each year on rangeland and pasture, from the Rangeland Analysis Platform (satellite-based estimates). See every year on the Land tab.

Open loss windows

No open loss windows in Pike 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

Pike 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.

Work out your numbers and print a page for your preparer

Information only; not financial, tax or legal advice. Ask your tax preparer. FSA decides program eligibility. IRS Notice 2026-54 (PDF)

Next 7 days · National Weather Service

Weather for Pike County

Forecast for the center point of Pike County.

    1. Today Mostly Cloudy then Slight Chance Rain Showers 52° 40° E 5 mph 15% rain
    2. Mon Sunny 61° 36° ENE 5 mph 0% rain
    3. Tue Sunny 63° 38° E 0–5 mph 0% rain
    4. Wed Sunny 68° 47° ESE 0–5 mph 1% rain
    5. Thu Partly Sunny 70° 49° 0 mph 6% rain
    6. Fri Sunny 73° 50° SE 0–5 mph 3% rain
    7. Sat Mostly Sunny then Slight Chance Rain Showers 72° 52° S 0–5 mph 47% rain

    Forecast from the National Weather Service, updated Nov 15, 2026. 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 Arkansas; 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.

    Guide: Burn bans: where to check and what they mean

    Weather warnings right now

    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
    0.49 in 10% of normal
    Last 12 months
    39.35 in 69%
    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 4.97 in; same month last year 2.83 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: RX Buck Creek (Prescribed fire, OK), about 60 mi from the county center; 805 acres, containment not reported, perimeter of Jun 1, 2026.

    See the fire map

    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 Pike County. Frost = 32°F; hard freeze = 28°F.

    Murfreesboro 1w weather station (6 mi away)

    Typical last spring frostTypical first fall frost
    Frost (32°F)
    209-day growing season
    		 Apr 5
    1 year in 10 it's after Apr 22
    		 Nov 1
    1 year in 10 it's before Oct 20
    Hard freeze (28°F)
    235-day growing season
    		 Mar 22
    1 year in 10 it's after Apr 8
    		 Nov 11
    1 year in 10 it's before Oct 29

    Source: NOAA U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020 (Murfreesboro 1w), NOAA files as of Jun 27, 2023. Fetched Nov 11, 2026.

    Text me Pike County changes

    Nearest USDA-reported sale barns

    1. Hope Livestock Auction Hope, AR 34 mi · sells Thursdays · latest USDA report Nov 12, 2026
    2. County Line Sale Ratcliff, AR 80 mi · sells Wednesdays · latest USDA report Nov 11, 2026
    3. I-40 Livestock Ozark, AR 93 mi · sells Thursdays · latest USDA report Nov 12, 2026
    4. Cleburne County Livestock Heber Springs, AR 131 mi · sells Mondays · latest USDA report Nov 9, 2026
    5. McAlester Union Stockyards McAlester, OK 132 mi · sells Tuesdays · latest USDA report Nov 10, 2026

    Miles are straight-line from the county center. Sale days come from the barns' recent USDA AMS reports; call the barn to confirm. All barns

    Other barns nearby (not USDA-reported)

    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

    Printable county brief (PDF) · Everything on one page · Nearest USDA hay reports (none for Arkansas): Missouri, Oklahoma

    Common questions and nearby counties

    Is Pike County eligible for LFP in 2026?

    Yes. Pike County is on FSA's 2026 Livestock Forage Disaster Program county list, with up to 5 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.

    Source: FSA LFP county file of Nov 5, 2026

    What is the drought level in Pike County this week?

    On the Drought Monitor map of Nov 10, 2026, most of Pike County was in exceptional drought (D4), and the worst part was exceptional drought (D4) on 63% of the county. 11 straight weeks with some severe drought (D2) or worse.

    Source: U.S. Drought Monitor, map of Nov 10, 2026

    Is there a burn ban in Pike County?

    No official statewide list to check: Cownty doesn't read an official statewide burn-ban list for Arkansas; county commissions, sheriffs and fire districts post local fire restrictions, so check your county's own notices.

    What sale barns are near Pike County?

    The nearest USDA-reported sale barns: Hope (34 mi), last report Nov 12, 2026; Ratcliff (80 mi), last report Nov 11, 2026; Ozark AR (93 mi), last report Nov 12, 2026.

    Source: USDA AMS Market News reports

    What are the upcoming FSA and farm deadlines?

    Next: Nov 20, 2026: Apply for NRCS conservation cost-share (EQIP, CSP, ACEP) to be considered for 2027 money; 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.