1992 CENSUS OF AGRICULTURE HIGHLIGHTS OF AGRICULTURE: 1992 AND 1987 AVERY COUNTY, NORTH CAROLINA Item ALL FARMS 1992 1987 Farms .........................number.. 274 280 Land in farms ..................acres.. 19 712 20 826 Average size of farm .......acres.. 72 74 Value of land and buildings@1: Average per farm .........dollars.. 176 730 104 957 Average per acre .........dollars.. 2 647 1 333 Estimated market value of all machinery and equipment@1 Average per farm .........dollars.. 25 255 24 893 Farms by size: 1 to 9 acres ........................ 49 38 10 to 49 acres ...................... 94 119 50 to 179 acres ..................... 113 106 180 to 499 acres .................... 14 12 500 to 999 acres .................... 2 4 1,000 acres or more ................. 2 1 Total cropland .................farms.. 262 275 acres.. 8 063 8 115 Harvested cropland ...........farms.. 248 264 acres.. 4 529 3 337 Irrigated land .................farms.. 22 17 acres.. 178 101 Market value of agricultural products sold................$1,000.. 6 241 4 495 Average per farm .........dollars.. 22 776 16 054 Crops, including nursery and greenhouse crops............$1,000.. 5 734 4 045 Livestock, poultry, and their products....................$1,000.. 507 451 Farms by value of sales: Less than $2,500 .................... 72 95 $2,500 to $4,999 .................... 45 51 $5,000 to $9,999 .................... 56 48 $10,000 to $24,999 .................. 58 51 $25,000 to $49,999 .................. 28 23 $50,000 to $99,999 .................. 6 2 $100,000 or more .................... 9 10 Total farm production expenses.$1,000.. 4 192 2 675 Average per farm .........dollars.. 15 354 9 553 Net cash return from agricultural sales for the farm unit.......farms.. 273 280 $1,000.. 1 540 2 004 Average per farm..........dollars.. 5 640 7 155 Operators by principal occupation: Farming ............................. 138 138 Other ............................... 136 142 Operators by days worked off farm: Any ................................. 148 178 200 days or more ................... 93 114 Livestock and poultry: Cattle and calves inventory...farms.. 77 101 number.. 1 500 1 799 Beef cows ..................farms.. 72 78 number.. 786 808 Milk cows ..................farms.. 6 13 number.. 24 17 Cattle and calves sold .......farms.. 75 91 number.. 682 1 201 Hogs and pigs inventory ......farms.. 7 3 number.. 24 8 Hogs and pigs sold ...........farms.. 0 0 number.. 0 0 Sheep and lambs inventory ....farms.. 2 6 number.. (D) 191 Chickens 3 months old or older inventory.............farms.. 8 17 number.. 246 238 Broilers and other meat-type chickens sold...............farms.. 0 0 number.. 0 0 Selected crops harvested: Corn for grain or seed .......farms.. 1 7 acres.. (D) (D) bushels.. (D) (D) Wheat for grain ..............farms.. 0 0 acres.. 0 0 bushels.. 0 0 Cotton .......................farms.. 0 0 acres.. 0 0 bales.. 0 0 Tobacco ......................farms.. 67 73 acres.. 184 145 pounds.. 359 798 251 954 Soybeans for beans ...........farms.. 0 0 acres.. 0 0 bushels.. 0 0 Peanuts for nuts .............farms.. 0 0 acres.. 0 0 pounds.. 0 0 Hay-alf, other, wild, silage..farms.. 69 102 acres.. 1 415 1 351 tons, dry.. 1 811 2 210 @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. .