1992 CENSUS OF AGRICULTURE HIGHLIGHTS OF AGRICULTURE: 1992 AND 1987 ALEXANDER COUNTY, NORTH CAROLINA Item ALL FARMS 1992 1987 Farms .........................number.. 507 594 Land in farms ..................acres.. 52 974 57 431 Average size of farm .......acres.. 104 97 Value of land and buildings@1: Average per farm .........dollars.. 162 949 141 340 Average per acre .........dollars.. 1 802 1 427 Estimated market value of all machinery and equipment@1 Average per farm .........dollars.. 28 272 23 151 Farms by size: 1 to 9 acres ........................ 61 49 10 to 49 acres ...................... 164 215 50 to 179 acres ..................... 213 247 180 to 499 acres .................... 57 69 500 to 999 acres .................... 8 11 1,000 acres or more ................. 4 3 Total cropland .................farms.. 419 515 acres.. 29 654 29 546 Harvested cropland ...........farms.. 342 440 acres.. 14 940 14 700 Irrigated land .................farms.. 6 20 acres.. 178 243 Market value of agricultural products sold................$1,000.. 35 216 30 823 Average per farm .........dollars.. 69 460 51 890 Crops, including nursery and greenhouse crops............$1,000.. 3 057 2 245 Livestock, poultry, and their products....................$1,000.. 32 159 28 577 Farms by value of sales: Less than $2,500 .................... 140 219 $2,500 to $4,999 .................... 68 68 $5,000 to $9,999 .................... 59 65 $10,000 to $24,999 .................. 51 63 $25,000 to $49,999 .................. 45 29 $50,000 to $99,999 .................. 55 41 $100,000 or more .................... 89 109 Total farm production expenses.$1,000.. 30 335 25 843 Average per farm .........dollars.. 59 832 43 508 Net cash return from agricultural sales for the farm unit.......farms.. 507 594 $1,000.. 5 036 4 758 Average per farm..........dollars.. 9 933 8 010 Operators by principal occupation: Farming ............................. 261 272 Other ............................... 246 322 Operators by days worked off farm: Any ................................. 267 343 200 days or more ................... 188 267 Livestock and poultry: Cattle and calves inventory...farms.. 377 409 number.. 18 765 15 020 Beef cows ..................farms.. 317 344 number.. 6 762 5 453 Milk cows ..................farms.. 34 54 number.. 3 179 3 201 Cattle and calves sold .......farms.. 344 365 number.. 7 776 6 519 Hogs and pigs inventory ......farms.. 6 18 number.. (D) 1 207 Hogs and pigs sold ...........farms.. 6 16 number.. (D) 4 238 Sheep and lambs inventory ....farms.. 8 7 number.. 66 303 Chickens 3 months old or older inventory.............farms.. 99 83 number.. 1 101 190 901 135 Broilers and other meat-type chickens sold...............farms.. 45 56 number.. 10 144 195 9 760 099 Selected crops harvested: Corn for grain or seed .......farms.. 52 75 acres.. 1 540 1 145 bushels.. 104 536 58 688 Wheat for grain ..............farms.. 14 20 acres.. 569 298 bushels.. 20 386 10 137 Cotton .......................farms.. 0 0 acres.. 0 0 bales.. 0 0 Tobacco ......................farms.. 43 59 acres.. 705 554 pounds.. 1 214 391 916 820 Soybeans for beans ...........farms.. 15 26 acres.. 487 559 bushels.. 14 518 7 122 Peanuts for nuts .............farms.. 0 3 acres.. 0 3 pounds.. 0 1 145 Hay-alf, other, wild, silage..farms.. 294 357 acres.. 8 588 8 540 tons, dry.. 21 502 14 591 @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. .