The South Plains is a region in northwest

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

, consisting of 24 counties. The main crop is cotton.

Counties

The South Plains region includes 24 counties: The northernmost four (Parmer, Castro, Swisher, and Briscoe) are also considered to be part of the

Texas Panhandle The Texas Panhandle is a region of the U.S. state of Texas consisting of the northernmost 26 counties in the state. The panhandle is a square-shaped area bordered by New Mexico to the west and Oklahoma to the north and east. It is adjacent to ...

region. The region consists of a portion of the Texas side of the geographical

Llano Estacado The Llano Estacado (), sometimes translated into English as the Staked Plains, is a region in the Southwestern United States that encompasses parts of eastern New Mexico and northwestern Texas. One of the largest mesas or tablelands on the North A ...

and the western portion of the lower part of the

Southwestern Tablelands The southwestern tablelands comprise an ecoregion running from east-central to south-east Colorado, east-central and a small portion of eastern New Mexico, some eastern portions of the Oklahoma Panhandle, far south-central Kansas, and portion ...

ecological region. South Plains extends south of the

, centered at

Lubbock Lubbock ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, 10th-most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and the county seat, seat of government of Lubbock County, Texas, Lubbock County. With a population of 260,993 in 2021, the city is also ...

. While prominent in the area of

petroleum Petroleum, also known as crude oil, or simply oil, is a naturally occurring yellowish-black liquid mixture of mainly hydrocarbons, and is found in geological formations. The name ''petroleum'' covers both naturally occurring unprocessed crude ...

production, the South Plains is mainly an

agricultural Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled peopl ...

region, producing a great percentage of the nation's

cotton Cotton is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective case, around the seeds of the cotton plants of the genus '' Gossypium'' in the mallow family Malvaceae. The fiber is almost pure cellulose, and can contain minor p ...

and possessing numerous large

cattle Cattle (''Bos taurus'') are large, domesticated, cloven-hooved, herbivores. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae and the most widespread species of the genus '' Bos''. Adult females are referred to as cows and adult ...

ranches. The South Plains is also home to several colleges and universities, the largest being

Texas Tech University Texas Tech University (Texas Tech, Tech, or TTU) is a public research university in Lubbock, Texas. Established on , and called Texas Technological College until 1969, it is the main institution of the five-institution Texas Tech University Sy ...

in Lubbock.

Major cities and towns

Cotton

Cotton is the most common crop grown in South Plains region. In 2004 and again in 2005, records were broken for cotton production. In an extended area comprising 31 counties in and near the South Plains, more than a million bales of cotton were harvested in 2005. This makes the South Plains the world’s largest cotton-producing region. See also:
National Cotton Council of America: United States Cotton ProductionUSDA Foreign Agricultural Service Crop Explorer

Regional identity

There are many businesses and organizations that use “South Plains” as part of their name, helping to form the South Plains regional identity. These include

South Plains College South Plains College (SPC) is a public community college in Levelland, Texas. It operates satellite branches in Plainview, at the Reese Technology Center, formerly Reese Air Force Base, in western Lubbock, and the Lubbock Center near centr ...

in Levelland; the Panhandle-South Plains Fair held annually in

; the South Plains Regional Chapter of the

American Red Cross The American Red Cross (ARC), also known as the American National Red Cross, is a non-profit humanitarian organization that provides emergency assistance, disaster relief, and disaster preparedness education in the United States. It is the desig ...

;

South Plains Council South Plains Council serves Scouts in the area of Lubbock, Texas. Organization * Chaparral District (Including Tasiwoo chapter) * Comanche Trail District * George White District * Haynes District * Quanah Parker District Camps C. W. Post Mem ...

of the

Boy Scouts of America The Boy Scouts of America (BSA, colloquially the Boy Scouts) is one of the largest scouting organizations and one of the largest List of youth organizations, youth organizations in the United States, with about 1.2 million youth partici ...

; and numerous other public and private organizations.

References

External links

South Plains FairSouth Plains Regional Chapter, American Red CrossSouth Plains Council
*
Catholic Charities, Diocese of Lubbock
{{Texas Regions of Texas Great Plains Plains of the United States Geography of Lubbock, Texas