1997 CENSUS OF AGRICULTURE HIGHLIGHTS OF AGRICULTURE: 1997 AND 1992 BRAZORIA COUNTY, TEXAS Item ALL FARMS 1997 1992 Farms .........................number.. 1 783 1 489 Land in farms ..................acres.. 566 809 563 993 Average size of farm .......acres.. 318 379 Value of land and buildings@1: Average per farm .........dollars.. 402 992 385 472 Average per acre .........dollars.. 1 293 1 066 Estimated market value of all machinery and equipment@1 Average per farm .........dollars.. 38 466 30 323 Farms by size: 1 to 9 acres ........................ 228 179 10 to 49 acres ...................... 582 438 50 to 179 acres ..................... 482 386 180 to 499 acres .................... 245 230 500 to 999 acres .................... 118 134 1,000 acres or more ................. 128 122 Total cropland .................farms.. 1 077 997 acres.. 203 341 221 812 Harvested cropland ...........farms.. 690 664 acres.. 75 952 80 820 Irrigated land .................farms.. 128 184 acres.. 29 596 38 682 Market value of agricultural products sold................$1,000.. 42 621 43 310 Average per farm .........dollars.. 23 904 29 087 Crops, including nursery and greenhouse crops............$1,000.. 25 097 23 767 Livestock, poultry, and their products....................$1,000.. 17 525 19 544 Farms by value of sales: Less than $2,500 .................... 873 612 $2,500 to $4,999 .................... 294 257 $5,000 to $9,999 .................... 214 206 $10,000 to $24,999 .................. 185 173 $25,000 to $49,999 .................. 75 74 $50,000 to $99,999 .................. 53 76 $100,000 or more .................... 89 91 Total farm production expenses.$1,000.. 39 252 41 936 Average per farm .........dollars.. 22 015 28 145 Operators by principal occupation: Farming ............................. 599 575 Other ............................... 1 184 914 Operators by days worked off farm: Any ................................. 1 221 952 200 days or more ................... 874 692 Livestock and poultry: Cattle and calves inventory...farms.. 1 361 1 077 number.. 79 052 74 407 Beef cows ..................farms.. 1 178 982 number.. 50 452 48 878 Milk cows ..................farms.. 31 22 number.. 56 45 Cattle and calves sold .......farms.. 1 263 993 number.. 33 787 37 126 Hogs and pigs inventory ......farms.. 78 58 number.. 3 236 4 372 Hogs and pigs sold ...........farms.. 49 38 number.. 2 488 6 184 Sheep and lambs inventory ....farms.. 38 22 number.. 554 339 Layers and pullets 13 weeks old and older inventory.............farms.. 112 74 number.. (D) 89 201 Broilers and other meat-type chickens sold...............farms.. 5 8 number.. 267 533 Selected crops harvested: Corn for grain or seed .......farms.. 6 20 acres.. 1 107 6 348 bushels.. 100 199 359 973 Sorghum for grain or seed.....farms.. 30 21 acres.. 14 807 8 331 bushels.. 851 716 473 399 Wheat for grain ..............farms.. 3 1 acres.. (D) (D) bushels.. (D) (D) Rice..........................farms.. 57 109 acres.. 19 111 33 162 cwt.. 1 134 188 1 713 898 Cotton .......................farms.. 30 21 acres.. 7 211 6 431 bales.. 6 447 4 982 Soybeans for beans ...........farms.. 35 13 acres.. 9 018 2 938 bushels.. 243 743 90 535 Hay-alf, other, wild, silage..farms.. 496 416 acres.. 21 959 18 134 tons, dry.. 44 552 43 419 @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.