About Anderson County, KS

Anderson County Kansas

Anderson County Kansas is approximately 584 square miles with an average county population of about 8,000. Anderson County has a wonderful Development Agency and encourages small business and growth in its rural towns. The Chamber of Commerce in Garnett is great start to finding out information about the area and the Experience Garnett website provides information about local events. Also check out the Anderson County Historical Society in Garnett and the local newspaper, the Anderson County Review. Check out Cornstock an annual festival about all things related to corn that happens every year.

One of the highlights of the county is the Prairie Spirit Trail which is about a 50 mile trail that you can hike, walk or bike ride. The trail goes through Ottawa, Princeton, Scipio, Richmond, Garnett, Welda, Colony, and Iola. It runs along Highways 59 and 169 in about 6-9 mile increments staring in Ottawa then to Princeton to Richmond to Garnett and to Welda. It is very easy to reach the Trail from Lawrence, Topeka or Kansas City and it is a great day outing on a nice day. Check out the video at the state parks website.

The towns of Anderson County include Bush City, Central, Colony, Garnett, Glenlock, Greeley, Harris, Kincaid, Lone Elm, Mount Ida, Scipio, Selma, Vance, Welda, and Westphalia.

The airports in Anderson County include the Garnett Kansas Municipal Airport and the privately owned Graham Farms Airport and the hospital is the Anderson County Hospital which is part of the Saint Luke’s Health System.

The Topography and Physical Land Features of Anderson County Kansas include the Garnett City Park Dam and Lake Garnett which also has a raceway and Sporting Club at Lake Garnett which provides a gun range for shooting sports. Lakes in Anderson County Kansas include Andrews Lake, Crystal Lake, Garrison Lake, Lake Garnett, Lake Welda, Snake Lake, Spencer Lake. The creeks of Anderson County are Bradshaw, Cedar, Cherry, Driftwood, Elm, Fish, Iantha, Kenoma, Little Indian, Little Mule, Rush, Sac, Saline, Salty, Sandy, South Fork Pottawatomie, Stink, Thomas Creek. Other streams include Medicine Lodge River, Rocky Run, and Skunk Branch. Other features may include Acreages, Airports, Aquaculture, Aquatic, Areas, Basins, Bays, Bends, Bluestem, Brush Area, Brushes, Canals, Capes, Cemeteries, Cliffs, Crossings, Dams, Falls, Fisheries, Fishing Lake, Flats, Forests, Forts, Gaps, Gas, Gasfields, Gaslines, Grassy Plains, Gulley, Gullies, Guts, Hills, Hilltop, Hilly, Hunting Areas, Islands, Knolls, Lakes, Levee, Locales, Lowlands, Marshes, Marshlands, Military Bases, Mineral, Mineral Rights, Mines, Mining Fields, Mud, Muddy, Mudflats, Native Grass, Natural Springs, Nature Trails, Oil, Oilfields, Parks, Pastures, Pillars, Plains, Post Offices, Ranges, Reservoirs, Ridges, Salt Mines, Springs, State Parks, Streams, Strip Mines, Summits, Swamps, Tallgrass, Thickets, Towers, Townships, Trails, Tributaries, Water Springs, Wells, Wildlife, Valleys, Viaducts

Anderson County Kansas Agricultural Links

The County Extension Office has information on 4H and farming practices or try the local USDA Farm Service County Office for more information on Ag, Agriculture, Alfalfa, Beef, Breeders, Bulls, Calf, Calves, Cattle, Corn, CRP, Dairy, Equipment, Farm Credit, Farm Loans, Farm Ownership, Farmers, Farming, Farmland, Feeds, Feedlots, Hay, Hayfields, Head, Irrigated, Irrigation, Land, Lands, Land Investing, Milk, Milking, Pounds, Programs, Purchase Land, Ranch, Rancher, Ranches, Registered, Seeds, Silo, Slaughter, Sorghums, Soybeans, Steers, Sunflowers, Supply, Supplies, Wheat, Wheatfield

Other Kansas links include Great Plains Society of American Foresters, Kansas Alliance for Wetlands and Streams, Kansas Chapter of the American Fisheries Society, Kansas Chapter of the Wildlife Society, Kansas Section of the Society for Range Management, Soil and Water Conservation Society

If you are looking for a livestock sale around the area try the Anderson County Sales Company, Parsons Livestock Market, Allen County Livestock Market or Paola Livestock Auction or visit the Livestock Marketing Association’s website for live auctions in your area.

Anderson County Kansas Parks and Recreation Links

The Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks has information about Kansas recreational activities and wildlife including hunting, fishing, hiking, boating, license, permits, units, cover, upland birds, waterfowl, firearms, shotgun, crossbow, bow, archery, handgun, rifle, muzzleloading, pistol, muzzleload, quail, pheasant, prairie chicken, turkey, gobbler, hunters, hunt, cabins, ducks High Plain Zone, ducks Late Zone, Canada geese, white-fronted geese, light goose, doves, Eurasian collard dove, ringed turtle dove, squirrel, rabbit, extended archery antlerless whitetail deer, coyote, furbearer hunting, trapping, bobwhite quail, doe, deer, deer’s, big game, antelope, pronghorn, elk, mule deer, prairie dog, tallgrass prairie, lowland, brush thicket, streambottoms, controlled shooting areas, sandhill cranes, Kansas deer maps, blaze orange, badger, beaver, bobcat, gray fox, foxes, mink, muskrat, raccoon, red fox, river otter, otters, striped skunk, skunks, swift fox, opossum, ring-necked pheasant, greater prairie chicken, lesser prairie chicken, rails, snipe, crows, teal, woodcock, white-winged doves, mourning doves, pigeons, rock dove, rock pigeon, swans, cranes, soras, Virginia rail, Wilson’s snipe, shorebirds, dowitchers, mallard, wood duck, green-winged teal, American black duck, mottled duck, Northern pintail duck, Blue-winged teal, cinnamon teal, Northern shoveler, gadwall, Eurasian wigeon, American wigeon, canvasback, redhead, ring-necked duck, greater scaup, lesser scaup, common eider, king eider, oldsquaw, black scoter, surf scoter, white-winged scoter, common goldeneye, Barrow’s Goldeneye, bufflehead, Ruddy duck, crow, whooping crane. Fishing in Kansas provides opportunities to catch many fish including bass, channel catfish, channel cat, flathead catfish, carp, longnose gar, drum, sauger, crappie, white bass

Anderson County Kansas Zip Codes

66014 – Centerville

66015 – Colony

66032 – Garnett

66033 – Greeley

66039 – Kincaid

66091 – Welda

66093 - Westphalia

The Townships in Anderson County Kansas are Indian Creek, Jackson, Lincoln, Lone Elm, Monroe, North Rich, Ozark, Putnam, Reeder, Rich, Walker, Washington, Welda, Westphalia.

Wondering how the drought in Kansas is affecting pasture conditions in your area?

It has been a long dry year in most of Kansas but there is a difference between our usual late July hot spells and all out drought. You might not even think the Garnett area is in a drought. However, of the 105 counties in Kansas now 77 are in some type of drought watch. Some farmers in SW Kansas have not seen any negible rain for a year.

Anderson County has largely been left out of most of the drought warnings over the last few months since it sits in the Central East section of the Kansas agricultural districts and the far eastern parts of Kansas have fared much better with rain this year than the other 2/3 of the state.

However, this week Anderson County was added to the list of counties now approved for emergency haying and grazing.

It is tough for farmers and ranchers to make the decision to sell herds and there is some predictions that the selling off actually provides some boost to the tax revenuses as discussed in the Gardner News article.

Drought conditions for Kansas can be followed through the Kansas Water Office and many national news media outlets are covering the drought such as USA Today.

In McPhereson Kansas the Sentinel newspaper covered the drought conditions and cattle as well as many other news stories that have highlighted the dire situation for ranchers and cattle producers in the state of Kansas.

Drought conditions may end up ultimately changing the values for land if cattle produceres eventually have to go completely out of business. The production of the land in a drought state is also not worth as much per acre if the landowner needs to sell. If you would like local land value information for Anderson County and the Garnett area please contact us. You can also follow our Kansas Land News Podcast updates for current information on Kansas agricultural news.

Another week of land making the news headlines.

Move Over Ted Turner - there is a new big time landowner in the United States. The Land Report on Fox Business Newsfeatured Eric O'Keefe of The Land Report discussing John Malone's (Liberty Media CEO) purchase of 1 million acres of timberland in Maine. He bought the largest ranch on the market last year, The Bell Ranch in New Mexico. He started off his land purchases in Colorado in the Rocky Mountains but this last purchase has vaulted him well past Ted Turner for number of acres owned in the USA.

5 Reasons Investors Are Going Crazy For Farmland - from the Business Insider is yet another example of main stream media touting the benefits of owning and investing in farmland. It reminds you that farmland is a long term commitment - no day trading here folks - and then gives you the five reasons. Food demand is rising, Inflation is red hot and farmland is a natural hedge against that, Farmland offers stable returns, Farmland offers portfolio diversification, and last but certainly not least You can get tax breaks for buying farmland. All things farmers already know and apparently things that major business media moguls already know.

International Land Market - still strong - Farmers Guardian in UK reports Farmland proves good value and reports that farmland outperformed equities and all other property assets in 2010. Values increase by 13 per cent and that farmland prices were being driven by lack of supply and lack of quality.

Here we go again on the Farmland Bubble Bandwagon - from Agrimoney.com US land price 'surge' provokes fears among bankers the news cycle just cannot resist the idea of a farmland bubble. While the Fed continues to repeat its mantra that bubbles are difficult to predict and all indications are that debt service is low, blah, blah...anyone else getting tired of this? Values have risen in massive jumps over the last year in many areas of Kansas that haven't seen double digit increases for 10-20 years so are we just catching up with the rest of the country on values or is Kansas headed for a bursting bubble?

Farmland Values and Farm Income Soar - Survey of Tenth District of Agricultural Credit Conditions. The Fed Report was the big news this week. It shows that Kansas rose 19.5% from last year on non-irrigated farmland, 17.6 % on irrigated farmland and a huge 14.3% on ranchland. Ranchland is pasture and although this number is promising the actual numbers in the major Kansas MLS system failed to match those percentages for pasture land. Historically, pasture land has not gained nearly as much as cropland and I think these numbers are inflated somewhat due to the few number of sales. High quality farmland is scare on the market and it only takes a few sales to makes these percentages go sky high.

Can your land help promote tourism in your state?

As land professionals we wear many hats when promoting properties and one of my favorite hats to wear is Rural America Promoter. Agritourism is showing up more and more these days as people find new creative ways for the usefulness of their land. Guest or dude ranches have long been known as rural businesses but what exactly is agritourism? Agritourism uses the agriculture basis of the land to promote the area or a product to help bring in visitors. For example, corn mazes are well known form of agritourism.

So how could your land use be used for agritourism or even tourism in general? First, you must be passionate about whatever it is that you endeavor upon. Starting up a Bed & Breakfast if you like cooking, incorporating horses if you are an avid horseback rider or anything that you might already do on your land is your best place to start. Seasonal operations are the most popular ways to add some agritourism such as pumpkin patches, corn mazes or Christmas tree cuttings.

One corn maze operator became so successful at his farm corn mazes that he turned it into a whole new business. He now provides consulting services and corn maze design services to farmers all over the country.

Specialty products are one of the fasting growing areas and a good place to start. A honey farm started in a rural town in Kansas by two guys named John & Wayne turned into the John Wayne Honey farm and now they sell their specialty honey products online and at local grocers. Beekeeping might not be your thing but consider all the daily things you already do on your land. Many landowners have small orchards and some farms offer a Rent-A-Tree service for fruit picking where a family can rent a particular tree and then harvest and pick the fruit from that tree for a season.

Leasing your land for hunting or offering guided hunts are very popular with landowners that enjoy hunting. Many of these operations have blossomed into full resort lodges with restaurants and catered events. Offering trap shooting or target practice in a club setting with a clubhouse has allowed many landowners to also rent their building out for family reunions or weddings.

Wineries have been a popular option for grape growers so that they can have an end product instead of just wholesaling off their product. Most of these operations are supplemental to the main farming operation but still can provide income and help support rural areas. Many farmers offer their time to local schools and organizations for tours so they can help educate the younger generation about how food gets from farm to fork.

Many resources are available for helping you start a rural business. The USDA Rural Information Center has entire website section devoted to Promoting Tourism in Rural America.

Articles abound and a quick search will find articles about Agritourism being promoted in the state. An extensive list of ideas for agritourism for your land from Virginia Cooperative Extension and your local USDA office is a great source of information for rural business.

Think about your passions and check some resources and see if you might be able to help promote rural America with your land.

KANSAS Agricultural Prices and Indexes from the USDA and Kansas Dept. of Agriculture

Kansas Agricultural Prices report for the month of February 2011

The All Crops Index in January, at 254 percent of the 1990-92 base, is up 23 points from December and up 92 points from 2010.

Wheat prices in mid-January, at $7.55 per bushel, are up 64 cents from December and $2.95 above last January.

Corn prices in mid-January, at $5.75 per bushel, are up 57 cents from December and $2.16 above last January.

Soybean prices, at $13.30 per bushel in mid-January, are up $1.10 from December and $3.77 above last January.

All hay prices averaged $105 per ton in mid-January, down $2 from December but $2 higher than last year.

Alfalfa hay averaged $115 per ton, unchanged from December but $5 higher than last January. Other hay, at $75 per ton, is unchanged from December but $5 above last January.

UNITED STATES:

The All Farm Products Index of Prices Received in January is 169 percent of the 1990-92 base, up 11 points from December and 29 points above January 2010. The January All Crops Index, at 195, is up 20 points from December and 42 points above January 2010.

The January Livestock and Products Index, at 135, is unchanged from last month but up 13 points from January 2010.