1992 CENSUS OF AGRICULTURE HIGHLIGHTS OF AGRICULTURE: 1992 AND 1987 BERKSHIRE COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS Item ALL FARMS 1992 1987 Farms .........................number.. 320 392 Land in farms ..................acres.. 60 980 70 792 Average size of farm .......acres.. 191 181 Value of land and buildings@1: Average per farm .........dollars.. 515 652 386 964 Average per acre .........dollars.. 3 325 2 009 Estimated market value of all machinery and equipment@1 Average per farm .........dollars.. 39 098 30 510 Farms by size: 1 to 9 acres ........................ 31 39 10 to 49 acres ...................... 69 91 50 to 179 acres ..................... 113 134 180 to 499 acres .................... 74 89 500 to 999 acres .................... 23 34 1,000 acres or more ................. 10 5 Total cropland .................farms.. 302 361 acres.. 29 383 31 934 Harvested cropland ...........farms.. 274 326 acres.. 20 676 22 280 Irrigated land .................farms.. 27 25 acres.. 78 82 Market value of agricultural products sold................$1,000.. 17 967 17 564 Average per farm .........dollars.. 56 145 44 805 Crops, including nursery and greenhouse crops............$1,000.. 4 641 4 430 Livestock, poultry, and their products....................$1,000.. 13 325 13 134 Farms by value of sales: Less than $2,500 .................... 110 158 $2,500 to $4,999 .................... 50 67 $5,000 to $9,999 .................... 39 29 $10,000 to $24,999 .................. 29 35 $25,000 to $49,999 .................. 20 28 $50,000 to $99,999 .................. 23 22 $100,000 or more .................... 49 53 Total farm production expenses.$1,000.. 15 973 13 371 Average per farm .........dollars.. 50 071 33 937 Net cash return from agricultural sales for the farm unit.......farms.. 319 394 $1,000.. 2 291 2 835 Average per farm..........dollars.. 7 182 7 197 Operators by principal occupation: Farming ............................. 185 195 Other ............................... 135 197 Operators by days worked off farm: Any ................................. 155 200 200 days or more ................... 97 137 Livestock and poultry: Cattle and calves inventory...farms.. 164 214 number.. 10 321 11 715 Beef cows ..................farms.. 92 114 number.. 1 030 1 197 Milk cows ..................farms.. 69 92 number.. 4 617 5 282 Cattle and calves sold .......farms.. 135 197 number.. 3 677 5 589 Hogs and pigs inventory ......farms.. 30 34 number.. 251 199 Hogs and pigs sold ...........farms.. 21 23 number.. 508 388 Sheep and lambs inventory ....farms.. 44 45 number.. 735 783 Chickens 3 months old or older inventory.............farms.. 35 43 number.. (D) 153 423 Broilers and other meat-type chickens sold...............farms.. 3 1 number.. 175 (D) Selected crops harvested: Corn for grain or seed .......farms.. 10 18 acres.. 1 008 836 bushels.. 79 940 85 677 Corn for sil or green chop....farms.. 49 64 acres.. 4 149 4 131 tons, green.. 68 376 74 464 Irish potatoes................farms.. 6 4 acres.. (D) (D) cwt.. (D) (D) Hay-alf, other, wild, silage..farms.. 215 270 acres.. 15 478 17 720 tons, dry.. 33 264 37 707 Vegetables harvested..........farms.. 52 46 acres.. 580 510 Land in orchards..............farms.. 19 27 acres.. 193 250 @1Data are based on a sample of farms. Legend: - Represents zero (D) Withheld to avoid disclosing data for individual farms (X) Not applicable (Z) Less than half the unit shown (NA) Not available Source: 1992 Census of Agriculture, Volume 1 Geographic Area Series, "Table 1. County Summary Highlights: 1992." This electronic series presents summary statistics for each county and state together with comparable data from the 1987 census. The items included are the same for all states and counties, except selected crops harvested, which vary by state. Data for 1992 and 1987 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 Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C. 20402. If you have any questions concerning the data in this report or need additional information or order forms for agriculture publications, please call Agriculture Division, Bureau of the Census, at 1-800-523-3215. .