Aging farmers in southern New Mexico’s Hatch Valley, whose families have tilled the same ground for generations, fear they may be the last in their bloodlines to do so after drought, diseased plants and a catastrophic September flood produced historic crop losses, Searchlight New Mexico reports.
A levee breach on Sept. 29 near the Rio Grande outlet in nearby Rincon unleashed muddy, silt-filled water across the 134-square-mile Rincon Arroyo watershed after heavy rains from Hurricane Polo saturated already wet ground. Don Hackey, approaching his 50th year farming, said the surge took about 40 minutes to inundate his pecan orchards and destroy costly equipment. The thick clay left behind blocks oxygen to tree roots and cannot be separated from pecans by farm machinery, he said.
The New Mexico Chile Association reported green chile shortfalls of 20% to 50% in 2026, worsened by persistently hot nights and curly top virus. Joe Lack, owner of Lack Farms, came up 150 acres short on chile and noted that equipment payments, water bills, taxes and land payments continue even when the harvest is gone. Floodwaters also seeped into wells and clogged them with sediment, and Lack called what emerged from the arroyo a breeding ground for bacteria.
Hatch Mayor Dennis Torres said recovery takes years, telling Searchlight, "I ain’t got no 20 years left in my life." Still, many refuse to quit. Hackey plans to hand management to his son Roy, and some fields showed modest improvement in later harvests.
Why It Matters
Farmers said maintenance of dams, arroyos and the Rio Grande too often comes only after disaster.
About This Story
Daily Reports is Brant.One’s news roundup. Each day we gather the New Mexico stories worth knowing from newsrooms across the state, sum them up and point you to the source. This one comes from Searchlight New Mexico’s reporting, and their original story has the interviews and full details.
Editor’s note: Updated Oct. 31, 2026. This story is now part of Daily Reports, our New Mexico news roundup, and was revised to credit Searchlight New Mexico’s original reporting. Learn how Daily Reports works in our editorial standards.
