Corn? I moved from Illinois...which has +40 inches of rain a year and corn... to eastern Kansas, which has about 30 inches a year where I am at. Some, but not much Corn.
The dry line starts just west of the 100th meridian west of Topeka. Less than 30 after that. Pretty much Wheat and cattle and limestone quarries after er that. We have forests--oak, hickory, locust-- here and out to Topeka and a bit beyond. I have been out west to Junction City west of Ft Riley about 3 times, and the trees--cottonwood, osage, and poplar...disappear except along creek banks and reservoirs. )
Fort Riley
Location: United States > Kansas > Riley County > Madison > Fort Riley
Latitude: 39.171
Longitude: -96.779
Elevation: 369 meters / 1211 feet)
https://news.climate.columbia.edu/2018/04/11/the-100th-meridian-where-the-great-plains-used-to-begin-now-moving-east/


(Both about 100 miles west of me)
More pictures at this link Ft Riley KS
I wonder if that view from Manhattan, KS, is from the hills just north of the town? There is a spot there called “Top of the World” and for Kansas, it is indeed a spot from which one can see in most directions a long way.
Not too far from our place now is another transition zone — where the glaciers stopped roughly along a line from Carbondale, IL to Shawneetown, IL.
War presently having our own little weather “border” of sorts. We were supposed to get about 1-1/2” of rain starting Friday late afternoon, and then continuing until noon or so today. However, most of the rain keeps advancing from the south and then fizzles as it crosses the KY-TN border, mostly dying by the time it gets to that last westward portion of the Ohio River B4 it joins the Mississippi. We’ve had less than 1/10th inch - not much relief for our overall dry start to 2026 (despite the heavy snow/sleet that despite the warm temperatures of the last few days, remnants still persist in a few shaded spots that got significant drifts.) NWS keeps insisting this present rain will move north, but even the 90% probability now comes with predicted amounts of only about another 1/10” of rain. It’s just enough to keep the top of the soil muddy, but general soil moisture, the aquifers, and my attempt to collect some rain water won’t benefit much. :-(
The good news is that some of the drought afflicted areas not too far from here will get some relief.
More hilly than expected. I always think of corn and acres and acres of Sunflowers when I think of Kansas. :)
https://wichitamom.com/around-wichita/kansas-sunflower-fields/
They’ve started doing these as a tourist thing here in Wisconsin, too. Very popular!