DirtFlight / Farmland and ranches

Farmland and ranches

Farm and ranch listings that show the soil, slope and water.

Buyers of farm and ranch ground ask about soils, drainage, flood and what can be built. DirtFlight measures those inside the boundary and shows them on the aerial.

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Aerial 3D view of a 251 acre mixed farm and timber parcel in Allamakee County, Iowa, with rolling hills and contoured fields

Short answer

A DirtFlight pack for farm and ranch ground shows the parcel boundary on an aerial and in 3D, with soils and septic limitations per soil map unit, buildability by slope, flood zone and wetland measured in acres, streams and ponds, power lines and a contour map. The aerial shows field edges, timber and water at a glance. It does not report yields, tillable acres or a productivity rating, so use county and soil survey records for those. Boundaries are approximate and are not a survey.

Paydirt layers

The ground facts, in acres.

Soils

Soil map units inside the boundary, with septic limitations for each, so a buyer sees where a home site is easier.

Slope

Buildability by slope reports acres that are flat enough to build on, and the contour map shows the lay of the land. Buildable: ground outside mapped slope, flood and wetland areas. A screen, not a zoning, septic or permit approval.

Flood and wetland

Flood zone and mapped wetland are measured in acres inside the boundary.

Water

Streams and ponds, perennial told apart from intermittent.

Power

Power lines with voltage and distance to the boundary.

Frontage

Road frontage on named public roads, so a buyer sees how the tract is reached.

Soils and buildability

Soils and buildability on a rolling Iowa farm.

A mixed tract of cropland, pasture and timber on the Driftless hills, with the same set a buyer asks for: soils under the boundary, steep ground, flood and wetland.

251 acres, Allamakee County, Iowa. The soil profile cake slice: the layers under the boundary.

Buildable ground map of an Iowa farm parcel with steep slopes over 25 percent in red and small wetlands in blue — 251 acres, Allamakee County, Iowa. Buildable ground: slopes over 25 percent in red, wetland in blue. Buildable: ground outside mapped slope, flood and wetland areas. A screen, not a zoning, septic or permit approval.

Soils and septic limitations panel and table for an Iowa farm parcel by soil map unit — 251 acres, Allamakee County, Iowa. Soils and septic limitations, by soil map unit.

Why drainage and slope questions come first.

On farm and ranch ground the same questions repeat: how much of this floods, where does the water leave, and can I put a house on it. The flood and wetland acres, the stream layer and the slope map answer those from the listing page. They are screening facts. Tile, ditches, ratings and yields come from the seller, the county and the soil survey, and a buyer should confirm them.

Contoured fields and rounded edges.

On rolling ground the field lines follow the slope. The 3D views show how strips, terraces and pivots sit on the hills, and the contour map shows the grade under them.

Aerial 3D view of a Maryland farm parcel with contour strip cropping on hillsides, woods and a farmstead, boundary outlined — 94 acres, Garrett County, Maryland. Contour strip cropping on a hillside farm.

Aerial 3D view of a southern Illinois mixed farm parcel with rolling fields, timber draws and a pond, boundary outlined — 113 acres, Randolph County, Illinois. Rolling pasture, hay and timber draws in the Illinois hill country.

Contour map of an Iowa farm parcel with the boundary outlined and contour lines every 20 feet — 251 acres, Allamakee County, Iowa. Contours every 20 feet inside the Iowa boundary.

Aerial 3D view of a West Texas irrigated farm parcel with center pivot circles and a farmstead — 161 acres, Lubbock County, Texas. Irrigated cropland on the Texas South Plains.

Pop-out 3D photo of a Maryland contour farm parcel lifted off the landscape with dirt walls — 94 acres, Garrett County, Maryland. A pop-out of the Maryland farm: strips, woodlot and the layers cut away.

Mixed tracts and adjoining parcels.

Farms are often sold as several parcels. Enter the APNs separated by commas and adjoining parcels merge into one boundary and one pack. If the plan is to split a tract, the app can also produce a pack per lot from a plat PDF or drawn lots.

Farm and ranch land in every state.

Every county in every farm and ranch state works the same way: type the parcel number, or draw the boundary on the map or upload a file.

Farm and ranch states

Every state

Every state has a page, and DirtFlight works in every county in the country. Type the parcel number, or draw the boundary on the map or upload a file. See the coverage page.

Straight answers

Questions people ask about this.

Does DirtFlight show soil types on a farm listing?

Yes, on Paydirt. Soil map units inside the boundary are shown with septic limitations for each.

Does it give tillable acres or crop yields?

No. It gives total acreage inside the boundary and the ground facts above. Use county records and the soil survey for productivity ratings and tillable acres.

Can it show how much of a farm is in a flood zone?

Yes. Flood zone and mapped wetland are measured in acres inside the boundary.

Can I combine several parcels into one farm pack?

Yes. Enter the APNs separated by commas and adjoining parcels merge into one boundary.

Does it work in my county?

Yes, every county in the country. Type the APN, or draw the boundary on the map or upload a KML, KMZ, GeoJSON or zipped shapefile, and you hear before anything is charged if a parcel will not come up from its number.

Free for a limited time.

Make an account, enter an APN, and the pack renders in about ten minutes. After launch, Dirt is $29 a parcel, Paydirt is $79, PayDirt Pro is $199 a month for 20 Paydirt packs, and Pro+ is $299 for 45.

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