1997 CENSUS OF AGRICULTURE HIGHLIGHTS OF AGRICULTURE: 1997 AND 1992 MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS Item ALL FARMS 1997 1992 Farms .........................number.. 531 535 Land in farms ..................acres.. 30 718 31 583 Average size of farm .......acres.. 58 59 Value of land and buildings@1: Average per farm .........dollars.. 503 318 402 629 Average per acre .........dollars.. 9 762 7 647 Estimated market value of all machinery and equipment@1 Average per farm .........dollars.. 40 939 31 731 Farms by size: 1 to 9 acres ........................ 163 155 10 to 49 acres ...................... 195 206 50 to 179 acres ..................... 139 137 180 to 499 acres .................... 27 30 500 to 999 acres .................... 7 7 1,000 acres or more ................. 0 0 Total cropland .................farms.. 463 476 acres.. 15 253 18 005 Harvested cropland ...........farms.. 432 428 acres.. 11 992 13 972 Irrigated land .................farms.. 186 143 acres.. 1 586 1 324 Market value of agricultural products sold................$1,000.. 57 572 44 882 Average per farm .........dollars.. 108 421 83 892 Crops, including nursery and greenhouse crops............$1,000.. 49 788 34 735 Livestock, poultry, and their products....................$1,000.. 7 783 10 147 Farms by value of sales: Less than $2,500 .................... 168 170 $2,500 to $4,999 .................... 67 66 $5,000 to $9,999 .................... 55 75 $10,000 to $24,999 .................. 86 59 $25,000 to $49,999 .................. 39 56 $50,000 to $99,999 .................. 41 38 $100,000 or more .................... 75 71 Total farm production expenses.$1,000.. 36 251 31 243 Average per farm .........dollars.. 68 269 58 398 Operators by principal occupation: Farming ............................. 283 292 Other ............................... 248 243 Operators by days worked off farm: Any ................................. 257 260 200 days or more ................... 161 156 Livestock and poultry: Cattle and calves inventory...farms.. 93 106 number.. 2 569 3 185 Beef cows ..................farms.. 61 72 number.. 517 707 Milk cows ..................farms.. 19 33 number.. 726 1 078 Cattle and calves sold .......farms.. 69 78 number.. 1 197 1 614 Hogs and pigs inventory ......farms.. 35 36 number.. 4 096 1 445 Hogs and pigs sold ...........farms.. 30 27 number.. 4 966 2 772 Sheep and lambs inventory ....farms.. 46 56 number.. 885 1 211 Layers and pullets 13 weeks old and older inventory.............farms.. 46 60 number.. 10 706 24 894 Broilers and other meat-type chickens sold...............farms.. 5 7 number.. 1 095 4 998 Selected crops harvested: Corn for grain or seed .......farms.. 6 8 acres.. 71 220 bushels.. 8 600 4 552 Corn for sil or green chop....farms.. 17 32 acres.. 576 1 046 tons, green.. 11 080 18 543 Potatoes, excl. sweetpotatoes.farms.. 9 8 acres.. 27 11 cwt.. 1 957 1 390 Hay-alf, other, wild, silage..farms.. 176 184 acres.. 7 119 9 106 tons, dry.. 12 517 17 003 Vegetables harvested..........farms.. 139 136 acres.. 2 357 2 265 Land in orchards..............farms.. 56 53 acres.. 902 819 @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.