To the Providers and Users of Pershing County Agricultural Statistics:
University of Nevada Cooperative Extension (UNCE) and Nevada Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) have once gain collaborated to produce a fact sheet summarizing agricultural data for Pershing County. All of the information in this fact sheet came from the 2004-2005 Nevada Agricultural Statistics Service’s Annual Report and the 2002 USDA Census of Agriculture. It is hoped that this county-version will be helpful to those seeking agricultural data pertinent to Pershing County. Special thanks go to the Pershing County farmers and ranchers whose voluntary participation in the NASS surveys provided this information. Questions regarding any of these statistics or additional information are welcomed.
Located in northwestern Nevada, Pershing County’s population was listed at 6,631 in 2004. The main industries are mining and agriculture. A severe drought continued and again severely limited agricultural production, especially small grains, during the 2004 growing season. The county was declared a disaster area in 2003 and farmers and ranchers received federal assistance because of the drought. The Census of Agriculture shows the county with 115 farms and ranches covering more than 130,000 acres excluding public grazing allotment lands. Average farm size is 1,140 acres. Alfalfa hay, alfalfa seed, and small grains are the principle crops. Sheep and cattle commonly graze dormant fields during the winter months. The county is home to the state’s largest cattle feedlot but its sheep feedlot has remained closed since 2003. While agricultural production for this past year was valued at slightly more than $29 million, if one considers the multiplier effect of this production, the total economic impact on the county is much greater.
Alfalfa hay remains by far the most important crop in terms of both acres harvested and value of production. Despite an 80% reduction in alfalfa seed acreage over the last eight years, it remained in second place followed by all other hay. Small grains were once again being harvested although acreage remained greatly reduced by the drought. Together, these crops were valued at approximately $8.8 million during 2004, down slightly from previous years. Livestock, including cattle and calves, as well as sheep, were valued more than $19 million, down from $20 million last year.
The Census of Agriculture counts as a farm every place from which $1,000 or more of agricultural products were produced and sold or normally would have been sold during the census year. It is the only source of uniform, comprehensive agricultural data for every county in the nation. The latest census lists some interesting characteristics concerning farms in Pershing County. The following table shows the number of farms by size and sales.
This table is based upon a sample of farms and is taken from the 2002 Census of Agriculture. As can be seen, the cash value of receipts in the table above is slightly less than the total value of production reported on page two. While differences in “cash receipts” will occur from year to year, this table still provides an overview of the respective rankings of the state’s counties based upon agricultural production values. For any additional information or questions concerning the Pershing County data presented in this fact sheet please contact the authors at their respective addresses.
Don Breazeale Extension Educator Pershing County Cooperative Extension P.O. Box 239 Lovelock, NV 89419 (775) 273 – 2923
Martin Owens State Statistician Nevada Agricultural Statistics Service P.O. Box 8880 Reno, NV (775) 784 - 5584
