1997 CENSUS OF AGRICULTURE HIGHLIGHTS OF AGRICULTURE: 1997 AND 1992 NELSON COUNTY, VIRGINIA Item ALL FARMS 1997 1992 Farms .........................number.. 357 358 Land in farms ..................acres.. 73 200 72 681 Average size of farm .......acres.. 205 203 Value of land and buildings@1: Average per farm .........dollars.. 329 616 299 224 Average per acre .........dollars.. 1 624 1 176 Estimated market value of all machinery and equipment@1 Average per farm .........dollars.. 27 236 22 443 Farms by size: 1 to 9 acres ........................ 17 18 10 to 49 acres ...................... 67 65 50 to 179 acres ..................... 156 159 180 to 499 acres .................... 88 87 500 to 999 acres .................... 18 20 1,000 acres or more ................. 11 9 Total cropland .................farms.. 316 328 acres.. 35 333 32 513 Harvested cropland ...........farms.. 253 270 acres.. 14 261 12 947 Irrigated land .................farms.. 20 17 acres.. 772 229 Market value of agricultural products sold................$1,000.. 6 844 5 799 Average per farm .........dollars.. 19 172 16 197 Crops, including nursery and greenhouse crops............$1,000.. 3 997 2 756 Livestock, poultry, and their products....................$1,000.. 2 847 3 043 Farms by value of sales: Less than $2,500 .................... 116 108 $2,500 to $4,999 .................... 67 88 $5,000 to $9,999 .................... 68 74 $10,000 to $24,999 .................. 71 50 $25,000 to $49,999 .................. 20 19 $50,000 to $99,999 .................. 5 10 $100,000 or more .................... 10 9 Total farm production expenses.$1,000.. 5 945 5 291 Average per farm .........dollars.. 16 700 14 780 Operators by principal occupation: Farming ............................. 147 138 Other ............................... 210 220 Operators by days worked off farm: Any ................................. 231 230 200 days or more ................... 155 171 Livestock and poultry: Cattle and calves inventory...farms.. 268 267 number.. 13 388 14 056 Beef cows ..................farms.. 236 233 number.. 7 482 7 567 Milk cows ..................farms.. 4 12 number.. 29 44 Cattle and calves sold .......farms.. 263 272 number.. 6 679 6 917 Hogs and pigs inventory ......farms.. 9 11 number.. 415 217 Hogs and pigs sold ...........farms.. 7 8 number.. 299 199 Sheep and lambs inventory ....farms.. 11 8 number.. 1 662 1 172 Layers and pullets 13 weeks old and older inventory.............farms.. 16 20 number.. (D) 392 Broilers and other meat-type chickens sold...............farms.. 0 1 number.. 0 (D) Selected crops harvested: Corn for grain or seed .......farms.. 19 28 acres.. 418 595 bushels.. 17 320 59 372 Wheat for grain ..............farms.. 0 2 acres.. 0 (D) bushels.. 0 (D) Tobacco ......................farms.. 0 2 acres.. 0 (D) pounds.. 0 (D) Soybeans for beans ...........farms.. 2 0 acres.. (D) 0 bushels.. (D) 0 Peanuts for nuts .............farms.. 0 0 acres.. 0 0 pounds.. 0 0 Hay-alf, other, wild, silage..farms.. 219 240 acres.. 11 626 10 688 tons, dry.. 21 292 18 939 Land in orchards..............farms.. 30 31 acres.. 1 239 1 421 @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.