“It’s been a brutal year for agriculture in the San Luis Valley,” says Heather Dutton. As manager of the San Luis Valley Water Conservancy District and a fifth-generation resident of the valley, she has both the data and the personal experience to understand the impact of this year’s drought.

“We hit records this year,” she continues. Snowpack fell to extreme lows in some areas, rainfall came late, streamflows were at base levels a lot of the summer, and total water supply will finish about 46 percent of average. Dutton expects the valley’s aquifer system to reach its lowest level since measurements began in 1976.

The rivers and aquifer system are the lifeblood of the valley. For farmers with wells, it has meant enough water to produce healthy crops—even this year. But as the climate grows increasingly dry, that supply is under pressure.

Dutton believes more farmers would benefit from adding rye to their crop rotations. She and Sarah Jones of Jones Farms Organics started The Rye Resurgence Project in 2024 with the idea of building the market for the hardy grain that has been known to survive in less-hospitable soils and climates for centuries.

“It’s this super crop that uses much less water than other rotational crops,” she says.

According to Dutton, rye uses around 12 inches of water annually, compared with 18 or even 36 inches for other rotational crops. The difference allows farmers to reserve their water for crops that generate more income.

The San Luis Valley has been shaped by water scarcity, but Dutton says conditions are becoming increasingly dry. In the 1980s, she remembers how lush green crops filled fields from “fencerow-to-fencerow.” But since around 2000, the climate has become more variable, and water supplies have declined, Dutton reflects.

The landscape can look deceptively healthy. Where farmers have strong wells and reliable water rights, crops can still flourish. But many farmers fallowed about 20 percent of their fields this year, Dutton shares. She describes the landscape as looking like its edges are shrinking inward, with agriculture concentrated around the places where water remains available.

This year’s drought builds on the water deficits left by previous dry years. Without sufficient rain and snowfall this fall and winter, water reserves are likely to be affected for years to come. “You can’t count on the next years being average,” Dutton says.

“Looking at it on paper and then seeing it on the ground, it’s really shocking,” she says.

Water savings are just part of the reason Dutton is a rye enthusiast.

When it's planted in the fall, rye can keep soil covered through the winter and spring. Its quick-growing, living roots reduce wind erosion. This keeps the soil where it’s supposed to be instead of turning to blowing dust that can create dangerous, dust-bowl-like conditions on roads and affect air quality for valley communities.

Additionally, rye’s roots support improved soil health by adding organic matter and supporting soil structure. Because it shoots up shortly after planting in the fall, it can also outcompete weeds and help reduce the need for herbicides. In addition to selling rye, farmers can graze it with their cattle or sheep or incorporate it back into the soil as green manure.

Dutton explains that the farmers who have  incorporated rye into their rotations are seeing improvements in their soil and subsequent crops — and they have additional water to use.

“That’s why I call it a super crop,” she says. “It checks all these boxes.”

Part of the impetus for The Rye Resurgence Project was to help farmers see how rye could be grown at a profit. 

“The farmers are ready,” she explains. Grain grows well in the valley. They have the equipment and they are used to experimenting. 

In 2024, the project began with the goal of working with ten farmers and creating enough demand to make rye a viable part of their rotations. Since then, San Luis Valley farmers have planted more than 17,000 acres of rye. 

Others are “starting to watch across the fence,” she says. But the market is still nascent.

The Rye Resurgence model is not meant to replace cash crops like the potatoes the San Luis Valley is known for. Instead, it can become part of a rotation that allows farmers to save water for those crops and still make a profit from rye.

But a viable rye market requires millers, bakers, distillers, brewers, and other buyers willing to create demand for the crop. “It’s empowering that we all have an opportunity to be good neighbors through our purchases” she says.

Rye is one example of how to adapt Colorado’s food system to a changing climate while preserving the agricultural heritage and communities, she continues. 

And saving water is important across the state as the changing climate makes the region warmer and drier. It’s important to remember that agricultural water use is connected to the watersheds that supply communities across Colorado, Dutton explains.

Many people take for granted the ease of their water access. “You turn on the tap, and the water is still there,” Dutton says. That reliability is the result of people working to manage and protect water supplies.

Rye will not solve the valley’s — or the state’s — water challenges by itself. But in a place where every inch of water matters, a crop that can produce value while using less of it offers another option.