1997 CENSUS OF AGRICULTURE HIGHLIGHTS OF AGRICULTURE: 1997 AND 1992 CHARLES COUNTY, MARYLAND Item ALL FARMS 1997 1992 Farms .........................number.. 410 496 Land in farms ..................acres.. 55 928 59 389 Average size of farm .......acres.. 136 120 Value of land and buildings@1: Average per farm .........dollars.. 437 104 380 124 Average per acre .........dollars.. 2 755 2 927 Estimated market value of all machinery and equipment@1 Average per farm .........dollars.. 32 294 27 380 Farms by size: 1 to 9 acres ........................ 36 61 10 to 49 acres ...................... 142 169 50 to 179 acres ..................... 145 172 180 to 499 acres .................... 65 77 500 to 999 acres .................... 14 10 1,000 acres or more ................. 8 7 Total cropland .................farms.. 393 475 acres.. 32 640 33 709 Harvested cropland ...........farms.. 347 429 acres.. 24 252 22 184 Irrigated land .................farms.. 65 45 acres.. 825 685 Market value of agricultural products sold................$1,000.. 10 816 9 939 Average per farm .........dollars.. 26 381 20 037 Crops, including nursery and greenhouse crops............$1,000.. 9 364 7 996 Livestock, poultry, and their products....................$1,000.. 1 452 1 943 Farms by value of sales: Less than $2,500 .................... 120 154 $2,500 to $4,999 .................... 63 78 $5,000 to $9,999 .................... 68 76 $10,000 to $24,999 .................. 80 91 $25,000 to $49,999 .................. 33 48 $50,000 to $99,999 .................. 16 26 $100,000 or more .................... 30 23 Total farm production expenses.$1,000.. 8 109 6 592 Average per farm .........dollars.. 19 730 13 290 Operators by principal occupation: Farming ............................. 197 246 Other ............................... 213 250 Operators by days worked off farm: Any ................................. 246 280 200 days or more ................... 163 207 Livestock and poultry: Cattle and calves inventory...farms.. 126 131 number.. 3 174 3 064 Beef cows ..................farms.. 96 117 number.. 1 411 1 541 Milk cows ..................farms.. 9 20 number.. 108 88 Cattle and calves sold .......farms.. 110 104 number.. 1 588 1 263 Hogs and pigs inventory ......farms.. 33 52 number.. 1 553 4 407 Hogs and pigs sold ...........farms.. 28 46 number.. 1 848 7 340 Sheep and lambs inventory ....farms.. 21 15 number.. 391 389 Layers and pullets 13 weeks old and older inventory.............farms.. 27 53 number.. 799 2 796 Broilers and other meat-type chickens sold...............farms.. 1 0 number.. (D) 0 Selected crops harvested: Corn for grain or seed .......farms.. 110 120 acres.. 5 859 4 437 bushels.. 534 310 434 613 Wheat for grain ..............farms.. 60 65 acres.. 3 442 3 192 bushels.. 191 663 155 077 Barley for grain..............farms.. 4 4 acres.. 156 149 bushels.. 7 493 10 570 Tobacco ......................farms.. 114 184 acres.. 1 550 1 879 pounds.. 2 179 044 2 552 756 Soybeans for beans ...........farms.. 80 119 acres.. 9 313 10 298 bushels.. 264 759 319 387 Hay-alf, other, wild, silage..farms.. 167 168 acres.. 4 395 3 652 tons, dry.. 8 087 7 072 Vegetables harvested..........farms.. 44 48 acres.. 426 315 @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.