For Jefferson County's farmers and ranchers, the 2026 growing season will be remembered as one defined by scarcity. A historically low winter snowpack, back-to-back dry years, and an official drought declaration have combined to create conditions not seen in a generation -- and the effects are written plainly across fields and pastures from Culver to Metolius.

The Numbers Tell the Story

Jefferson County entered 2026 in dire shape: 94% of the county was classified as being in severe drought, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor, when Oregon Governor Tina Kotek declared drought emergencies for Jefferson County and several neighboring counties in April. The remaining 6% was still in moderate drought conditions -- meaning no corner of Jefferson County escaped unscathed.

The North Unit Irrigation District (NUID), which serves thousands of acres of Jefferson County farmland from Madras south through Culver and into the area north of Redmond, approved sharply reduced water allotments at its March 24 board meeting. Farmers received:

  • 1.30 acre-feet per acre from the Deschutes River system
  • 0.65 acre-feet per acre from the Crooked River system

Those numbers, while painful, gave growers a hard number to plan around early in the season. Statewide, junior water rights holders across Central Oregon faced curtailment orders as the Oregon Water Resources Department regulated flows more aggressively than in a typical year -- cutting off some users who rarely face regulation even in dry times.

Ranchers Feeling the Squeeze

Beef and hay operations have been hit particularly hard. Reduced water deliveries mean less irrigated pasture and forage, forcing ranchers to purchase hay at elevated prices or reduce herd numbers earlier in the summer than usual. With fire season arriving in earnest in July and August, grazing access on public lands was further constrained as fire closures swept across portions of the BLM lands that many local operations depend on for summer range.

Looking Toward Fall and Winter

Agricultural extension agents and irrigation district managers have been urging producers to document their losses for potential federal disaster assistance programs. The USDA's Farm Service Agency has made Livestock Forage Disaster Program (LFP) and Emergency Livestock Assistance Program (ELAP) resources available for counties with drought designations -- Jefferson County qualifies.

Whether the region gets relief this winter depends largely on snowpack in the Cascades, which feeds the Deschutes and Crooked river systems. Climatologists have offered cautious optimism about a La Nina pattern potentially easing into more neutral conditions, but no one is making promises.

For Jefferson County's agricultural community, the immediate focus is on surviving the season -- and getting ready, mentally and financially, for whatever comes next.