1992 CENSUS OF AGRICULTURE HIGHLIGHTS OF AGRICULTURE: 1992 AND 1987 FRANKLIN COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS Item ALL FARMS 1992 1987 Farms .........................number.. 519 616 Land in farms ..................acres.. 74 484 82 864 Average size of farm .......acres.. 144 135 Value of land and buildings@1: Average per farm .........dollars.. 382 114 244 320 Average per acre .........dollars.. 2 601 2 090 Estimated market value of all machinery and equipment@1 Average per farm .........dollars.. 38 635 26 903 Farms by size: 1 to 9 acres ........................ 41 60 10 to 49 acres ...................... 123 156 50 to 179 acres ..................... 220 245 180 to 499 acres .................... 112 139 500 to 999 acres .................... 21 15 1,000 acres or more ................. 2 1 Total cropland .................farms.. 489 578 acres.. 32 709 33 548 Harvested cropland ...........farms.. 455 535 acres.. 23 897 23 715 Irrigated land .................farms.. 60 47 acres.. 1 153 941 Market value of agricultural products sold................$1,000.. 30 028 24 575 Average per farm .........dollars.. 57 857 39 895 Crops, including nursery and greenhouse crops............$1,000.. 14 910 11 081 Livestock, poultry, and their products....................$1,000.. 15 118 13 494 Farms by value of sales: Less than $2,500 .................... 144 227 $2,500 to $4,999 .................... 73 89 $5,000 to $9,999 .................... 67 73 $10,000 to $24,999 .................. 73 57 $25,000 to $49,999 .................. 34 52 $50,000 to $99,999 .................. 49 54 $100,000 or more .................... 79 64 Total farm production expenses.$1,000.. 27 153 17 700 Average per farm .........dollars.. 52 318 28 734 Net cash return from agricultural sales for the farm unit.......farms.. 519 616 $1,000.. 3 230 5 688 Average per farm..........dollars.. 6 224 9 235 Operators by principal occupation: Farming ............................. 285 313 Other ............................... 234 303 Operators by days worked off farm: Any ................................. 296 362 200 days or more ................... 185 232 Livestock and poultry: Cattle and calves inventory...farms.. 244 296 number.. 13 063 13 444 Beef cows ..................farms.. 100 125 number.. 651 700 Milk cows ..................farms.. 125 151 number.. 6 562 6 475 Cattle and calves sold .......farms.. 210 251 number.. 5 227 5 524 Hogs and pigs inventory ......farms.. 45 56 number.. 348 556 Hogs and pigs sold ...........farms.. 35 44 number.. 787 1 145 Sheep and lambs inventory ....farms.. 58 60 number.. 1 437 1 353 Chickens 3 months old or older inventory.............farms.. 65 67 number.. 12 949 17 585 Broilers and other meat-type chickens sold...............farms.. 5 9 number.. 89 204 Selected crops harvested: Corn for grain or seed .......farms.. 15 24 acres.. 840 1 012 bushels.. 111 081 124 736 Corn for sil or green chop....farms.. 98 100 acres.. 4 648 3 923 tons, green.. 99 814 80 669 Irish potatoes................farms.. 23 23 acres.. 851 744 cwt.. 228 703 158 131 Hay-alf, other, wild, silage..farms.. 332 393 acres.. 14 906 15 587 tons, dry.. 35 062 34 501 Vegetables harvested..........farms.. 93 99 acres.. 1 563 1 403 Land in orchards..............farms.. 57 61 acres.. 1 050 1 157 @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. .