1997 CENSUS OF AGRICULTURE HIGHLIGHTS OF AGRICULTURE: 1997 AND 1992 COLORADO Item ALL FARMS 1997 1992 Farms .........................number.. 28 268 27 152 Land in farms ..................acres.. 32 634 221 33 983 029 Average size of farm .......acres.. 1 154 1 252 Value of land and buildings@1: Average per farm .........dollars.. 707 165 536 510 Average per acre .........dollars.. 618 426 Estimated market value of all machinery and equipment@1 Average per farm .........dollars.. 71 417 54 868 Farms by size: 1 to 9 acres ........................ 2 502 2 424 10 to 49 acres ...................... 5 516 4 867 50 to 179 acres ..................... 5 748 5 371 180 to 499 acres .................... 4 833 4 594 500 to 999 acres .................... 3 030 3 188 1,000 acres or more ................. 6 639 6 708 Total cropland .................farms.. 22 357 21 882 acres.. 10 509 384 10 933 484 Harvested cropland ...........farms.. 18 406 18 573 acres.. 5 896 984 5 532 964 Irrigated land .................farms.. 15 470 15 193 acres.. 3 430 129 3 169 839 Market value of agricultural products sold................$1,000.. 4 534 213 4 115 552 Average per farm .........dollars.. 160 401 151 575 Crops, including nursery and greenhouse crops............$1,000.. 1 326 944 1 036 174 Livestock, poultry, and their products....................$1,000.. 3 207 269 3 079 378 Farms by value of sales: Less than $2,500 .................... 7 328 6 365 $2,500 to $4,999 .................... 2 849 2 637 $5,000 to $9,999 .................... 3 220 3 005 $10,000 to $24,999 .................. 4 427 4 249 $25,000 to $49,999 .................. 3 060 3 135 $50,000 to $99,999 .................. 2 620 2 866 $100,000 or more .................... 4 764 4 895 Total farm production expenses.$1,000.. 3 725 343 3 569 175 Average per farm .........dollars.. 131 768 131 442 Operators by principal occupation: Farming ............................. 15 399 16 181 Other ............................... 12 869 10 971 Operators by days worked off farm: Any ................................. 15 459 13 914 200 days or more ................... 9 615 8 353 Livestock and poultry: Cattle and calves inventory...farms.. 15 592 14 797 number.. 3 307 301 3 086 717 Beef cows ..................farms.. 12 243 11 596 number.. 918 891 900 347 Milk cows ..................farms.. 814 1 162 number.. 79 617 81 825 Cattle and calves sold .......farms.. 15 124 14 439 number.. 3 751 788 3 569 739 Hogs and pigs inventory ......farms.. 1 225 1 643 number.. 787 440 464 479 Hogs and pigs sold ...........farms.. 1 035 1 558 number.. 1 452 164 878 515 Sheep and lambs inventory ....farms.. 1 628 1 911 number.. 593 755 730 272 Layers and pullets 13 weeks old and older inventory.............farms.. 1 628 1 767 number.. 3 793 457 4 257 327 Broilers and other meat-type chickens sold...............farms.. 74 74 number.. 11 933 (D) Selected crops harvested: Corn for grain or seed .......farms.. 3 579 4 066 acres.. 919 784 891 720 bushels.. 130 170 731 126 076 043 Corn for sil or green chop....farms.. 1 160 1 341 acres.. 96 344 98 838 tons, green.. 2 021 799 2 102 940 Sorghum for grain or seed.....farms.. 504 709 acres.. 148 004 163 850 bushels.. 5 272 619 6 280 126 Wheat for grain ..............farms.. 5 407 5 597 acres.. 2 515 100 2 384 979 bushels.. 76 656 526 71 825 463 Barley for grain..............farms.. 657 1 053 acres.. 84 564 115 321 bushels.. 8 639 798 8 934 199 Dry beans, excl. dry limas....farms.. 1 095 1 533 acres.. 116 544 150 824 cwt.. 2 028 685 2 509 515 Hay-alf, other, wild, silage..farms.. 13 446 13 160 acres.. 1 607 991 1 449 177 tons, dry.. 3 989 176 3 464 389 @1Data are based on a sample of farms. Legend: (D) Withheld to avoid disclosing data for individual farms (X) Not applicable (Z) Less than half the unit shown (NA) Not available Source: 1997 Census of Agriculture, Volume 1 Geographic Area Series, "Table 1. County Summary Highlights: 1997." This electronic series presents summary statistics for each county and State together with comparable data from the 1992 census. The items included are the same for all States and counties, except selected crops harvested, which vary by State. Data for 1997 and 1992 are directly comparable for acreage and inventories. Dollar values have not been adjusted for changes in price levels. You can obtain the Volume 1 Geographic Area Series from the National Technical Information Service. If you have any questions concerning the data in this report or need additional information or order forms for agriculture publications, please call the National Agricultural Statistics Service at 1-800-523-3215 or 1-800-727-9540.