1992 CENSUS OF AGRICULTURE HIGHLIGHTS OF AGRICULTURE: 1992 AND 1987 ESSEX COUNTY, VIRGINIA Item ALL FARMS 1992 1987 Farms .........................number.. 120 142 Land in farms ..................acres.. 56 280 69 188 Average size of farm .......acres.. 469 487 Value of land and buildings@1: Average per farm .........dollars.. 549 539 482 894 Average per acre .........dollars.. 1 161 932 Estimated market value of all machinery and equipment@1 Average per farm .........dollars.. 80 778 78 018 Farms by size: 1 to 9 acres ........................ 9 3 10 to 49 acres ...................... 29 21 50 to 179 acres ..................... 30 47 180 to 499 acres .................... 19 25 500 to 999 acres .................... 14 24 1,000 acres or more ................. 19 22 Total cropland .................farms.. 116 139 acres.. 38 648 45 834 Harvested cropland ...........farms.. 102 137 acres.. 34 612 37 017 Irrigated land .................farms.. 9 9 acres.. 534 1 346 Market value of agricultural products sold................$1,000.. 9 651 7 412 Average per farm .........dollars.. 80 429 52 194 Crops, including nursery and greenhouse crops............$1,000.. 9 163 6 129 Livestock, poultry, and their products....................$1,000.. 488 1 282 Farms by value of sales: Less than $2,500 .................... 20 25 $2,500 to $4,999 .................... 12 16 $5,000 to $9,999 .................... 17 23 $10,000 to $24,999 .................. 21 27 $25,000 to $49,999 .................. 12 17 $50,000 to $99,999 .................. 9 15 $100,000 or more .................... 29 19 Total farm production expenses.$1,000.. 8 499 7 290 Average per farm .........dollars.. 70 241 51 336 Net cash return from agricultural sales for the farm unit.......farms.. 121 142 $1,000.. 1 341 173 Average per farm..........dollars.. 11 079 1 216 Operators by principal occupation: Farming ............................. 66 85 Other ............................... 54 57 Operators by days worked off farm: Any ................................. 65 76 200 days or more ................... 41 43 Livestock and poultry: Cattle and calves inventory...farms.. 22 31 number.. 843 1 181 Beef cows ..................farms.. 17 28 number.. (D) 458 Milk cows ..................farms.. 1 0 number.. (D) 0 Cattle and calves sold .......farms.. 19 31 number.. 377 803 Hogs and pigs inventory ......farms.. 13 24 number.. 1 943 4 995 Hogs and pigs sold ...........farms.. 12 20 number.. 4 488 9 170 Sheep and lambs inventory ....farms.. 4 3 number.. 80 32 Chickens 3 months old or older inventory.............farms.. 4 8 number.. 46 388 Broilers and other meat-type chickens sold...............farms.. 0 0 number.. 0 0 Selected crops harvested: Corn for grain or seed .......farms.. 54 88 acres.. 10 528 11 167 bushels.. 1 269 797 884 386 Wheat for grain ..............farms.. 59 65 acres.. 7 597 6 979 bushels.. 428 466 319 151 Tobacco ......................farms.. 0 0 acres.. 0 0 pounds.. 0 0 Soybeans for beans ...........farms.. 80 111 acres.. 20 634 21 872 bushels.. 620 473 416 199 Peanuts for nuts .............farms.. 0 0 acres.. 0 0 pounds.. 0 0 Hay-alf, other, wild, silage..farms.. 15 26 acres.. 496 830 tons, dry.. 963 1 365 Land in orchards..............farms.. 1 1 acres.. (D) (D) @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. .