1997 CENSUS OF AGRICULTURE HIGHLIGHTS OF AGRICULTURE: 1997 AND 1992 BERKSHIRE COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS Item ALL FARMS 1997 1992 Farms .........................number.. 387 320 Land in farms ..................acres.. 62 833 60 980 Average size of farm .......acres.. 162 191 Value of land and buildings@1: Average per farm .........dollars.. 546 679 515 652 Average per acre .........dollars.. 3 150 3 325 Estimated market value of all machinery and equipment@1 Average per farm .........dollars.. 34 905 39 098 Farms by size: 1 to 9 acres ........................ 57 31 10 to 49 acres ...................... 96 69 50 to 179 acres ..................... 126 113 180 to 499 acres .................... 74 74 500 to 999 acres .................... 27 23 1,000 acres or more ................. 7 10 Total cropland .................farms.. 344 302 acres.. 30 794 29 383 Harvested cropland ...........farms.. 319 274 acres.. 21 725 20 676 Irrigated land .................farms.. 36 27 acres.. 111 78 Market value of agricultural products sold................$1,000.. 20 725 17 967 Average per farm .........dollars.. 53 553 56 145 Crops, including nursery and greenhouse crops............$1,000.. 8 294 4 641 Livestock, poultry, and their products....................$1,000.. 12 432 13 325 Farms by value of sales: Less than $2,500 .................... 135 110 $2,500 to $4,999 .................... 54 50 $5,000 to $9,999 .................... 59 39 $10,000 to $24,999 .................. 46 29 $25,000 to $49,999 .................. 22 20 $50,000 to $99,999 .................. 25 23 $100,000 or more .................... 46 49 Total farm production expenses.$1,000.. 17 957 15 973 Average per farm .........dollars.. 46 281 50 071 Operators by principal occupation: Farming ............................. 194 185 Other ............................... 193 135 Operators by days worked off farm: Any ................................. 209 155 200 days or more ................... 133 97 Livestock and poultry: Cattle and calves inventory...farms.. 160 164 number.. 9 468 10 321 Beef cows ..................farms.. 92 92 number.. 892 1 030 Milk cows ..................farms.. 68 69 number.. 4 116 4 617 Cattle and calves sold .......farms.. 133 135 number.. 3 673 3 677 Hogs and pigs inventory ......farms.. 42 30 number.. 833 251 Hogs and pigs sold ...........farms.. 25 21 number.. 1 540 508 Sheep and lambs inventory ....farms.. 40 44 number.. 640 735 Layers and pullets 13 weeks old and older inventory.............farms.. 40 35 number.. (D) (D) Broilers and other meat-type chickens sold...............farms.. 3 3 number.. (D) 175 Selected crops harvested: Corn for grain or seed .......farms.. 13 10 acres.. 1 455 1 008 bushels.. 180 992 79 940 Corn for sil or green chop....farms.. 39 49 acres.. 3 492 4 149 tons, green.. 67 630 68 376 Potatoes, excl. sweetpotatoes.farms.. 7 6 acres.. 3 (D) cwt.. 324 (D) Hay-alf, other, wild, silage..farms.. 217 215 acres.. 16 843 15 478 tons, dry.. 31 866 33 264 Vegetables harvested..........farms.. 50 52 acres.. 677 580 Land in orchards..............farms.. 16 19 acres.. 141 193 @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.