1997 CENSUS OF AGRICULTURE HIGHLIGHTS OF AGRICULTURE: 1997 AND 1992 VIRGINIA Item ALL FARMS 1997 1992 Farms .........................number.. 41 095 42 222 Land in farms ..................acres.. 8 228 226 8 297 011 Average size of farm .......acres.. 200 197 Value of land and buildings@1: Average per farm .........dollars.. 384 979 320 488 Average per acre .........dollars.. 1 920 1 636 Estimated market value of all machinery and equipment@1 Average per farm .........dollars.. 41 835 33 090 Farms by size: 1 to 9 acres ........................ 2 864 3 357 10 to 49 acres ...................... 10 283 10 361 50 to 179 acres ..................... 15 938 16 293 180 to 499 acres .................... 8 293 8 422 500 to 999 acres .................... 2 469 2 517 1,000 acres or more ................. 1 248 1 272 Total cropland .................farms.. 37 177 38 779 acres.. 4 322 425 4 311 840 Harvested cropland ...........farms.. 32 124 34 255 acres.. 2 520 961 2 449 013 Irrigated land .................farms.. 2 337 2 312 acres.. 84 926 61 759 Market value of agricultural products sold................$1,000.. 2 343 518 2 055 958 Average per farm .........dollars.. 57 027 48 694 Crops, including nursery and greenhouse crops............$1,000.. 780 099 696 489 Livestock, poultry, and their products....................$1,000.. 1 563 418 1 359 469 Farms by value of sales: Less than $2,500 .................... 10 999 10 546 $2,500 to $4,999 .................... 6 754 7 161 $5,000 to $9,999 .................... 7 203 7 687 $10,000 to $24,999 .................. 7 011 7 402 $25,000 to $49,999 .................. 3 042 3 266 $50,000 to $99,999 .................. 1 965 1 946 $100,000 or more .................... 4 121 4 214 Total farm production expenses.$1,000.. 1 924 690 1 699 051 Average per farm .........dollars.. 46 858 40 233 Operators by principal occupation: Farming ............................. 18 410 19 571 Other ............................... 22 685 22 651 Operators by days worked off farm: Any ................................. 23 215 23 465 200 days or more ................... 16 433 16 795 Livestock and poultry: Cattle and calves inventory...farms.. 26 547 27 638 number.. 1 639 058 1 653 191 Beef cows ..................farms.. 21 753 22 519 number.. 688 541 674 068 Milk cows ..................farms.. 1 671 2 369 number.. 121 823 140 033 Cattle and calves sold .......farms.. 26 350 26 917 number.. 906 897 855 634 Hogs and pigs inventory ......farms.. 1 170 2 085 number.. 385 755 412 736 Hogs and pigs sold ...........farms.. 823 1 596 number.. 710 320 715 452 Sheep and lambs inventory ....farms.. 1 456 1 727 number.. 73 932 117 714 Layers and pullets 13 weeks old and older inventory.............farms.. 1 588 2 069 number.. 4 834 867 6 191 513 Broilers and other meat-type chickens sold...............farms.. 671 640 number.. 258 684 455 201 697 436 Selected crops harvested: Corn for grain or seed .......farms.. 4 395 6 169 acres.. 318 208 361 326 bushels.. 29 480 704 40 633 506 Wheat for grain ..............farms.. 2 888 3 670 acres.. 257 063 241 042 bushels.. 15 504 394 12 598 036 Tobacco ......................farms.. 5 870 8 444 acres.. 54 035 55 419 pounds.. 115 735 107 113 240 049 Soybeans for beans ...........farms.. 3 135 3 709 acres.. 487 001 507 878 bushels.. 11 406 611 15 742 573 Peanuts for nuts .............farms.. 702 935 acres.. 74 867 93 720 pounds.. 190 590 588 258 551 252 Hay-alf, other, wild, silage..farms.. 25 028 25 282 acres.. 1 189 425 1 101 530 tons, dry.. 2 291 672 2 180 604 Land in orchards..............farms.. 1 080 1 387 acres.. 27 650 32 963 @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.