Farm Census

San Diego County, California

Farms, crops and livestock in the 2022 Census of Agriculture

4,031 farms179,330 acres in farms$1.09 billion in farm sales

Among US counties with published figures, San Diego County ranks second for sales of nursery and greenhouse crops and sixth for number of farms.

Its largest product group, nursery and greenhouse crops, makes up 72.7% of farm sales, against 6.6% across California.

Nursery and greenhouse: 72.7%Nursery and greenhouse72.7%Fruit and nuts: 12.6%Fruit and nuts12.6%Vegetables and melons: 6.6%6.6%Milk: 3.2%Milk3.2%Poultry and eggs: 2.5%2.5%Other animals: 0.8%0.8%Horses and mules: 0.8%0.8%Cattle and calves: 0.4%Aquaculture: 0.2%Hogs and pigs: 0.2%Hay and other crops: 0.1%Sheep and goats: under 0.1%Grains and oilseeds: under 0.1%Christmas trees: under 0.1%Nursery and greenhouse: 72.7%Nursery and greenhouse72.7%Fruit and nuts: 12.6%Fruit and nuts12.6%Vegetables and melons: 6.6%6.6%Milk: 3.2%3.2%Poultry and eggs: 2.5%2.5%Other animals: 0.8%Horses and mules: 0.8%Cattle and calves: 0.4%Aquaculture: 0.2%Hogs and pigs: 0.2%Hay and other crops: 0.1%Sheep and goats: under 0.1%Grains and oilseeds: under 0.1%Christmas trees: under 0.1%
Farm sales by product group, 2022, sized by value.
Sales by product group
Product groupSalesRank in state
Nursery, greenhouse and floriculture crops$795 million1st of 43
Fruit, tree nuts and berries$138 million24th of 52
Vegetables, melons and potatoes$71.7 million20th of 48
Milk from cows$34.7 million16th of 19
Poultry and eggs$26.8 million10th of 41
Other animals and animal products$9.3 million3rd of 36
Horses, ponies, mules, burros and donkeys$8.4 million1st of 47
Cattle and calves$4.3 million44th of 52
Aquaculture$2.2 million8th of 11
Hogs and pigs$1.7 million2nd of 26
Hay and other crops$581,00035th of 43
Sheep, goats, wool, mohair and goat milk$477,00027th of 45
Grains, oilseeds, dry beans and dry peas$47,00030th of 34
Christmas trees and short-rotation woody crops$27,00016th of 18

What the fields held

San Diego County harvested 37,953 acres of cropland in 2022, 29th of 54 counties in California. Orchard land covered acreage equal to 54% of that, vegetables 7%.

CropAcresShare of US
Orchard land20,4750.33%
of which grapes1,1340.10%
of which citrus5,5750.72%
of which apples2640.06%
of which pecans3under 0.1%
Vegetables2,6500.06%
of which potatoes12under 0.1%
Hay and haylage1,251under 0.1%
Berries4450.12%
Corn for grain35under 0.1%

Withheld to protect individual farms: barley, dry edible beans and almonds.

How much of the county is farmland

Share of the county land in farms6.7%

San Diego County ranks 49th of 55 counties in California on this measure.

  • 55,411 acres of cropland, 31% of farmland
  • 81,794 acres of pastureland, 46% of farmland
  • 12,900 acres of woodland, 7% of farmland
  • 38,384 acres irrigated

Farm sizes

The typical farm in San Diego County is smaller than the national median of 72 acres, at 5 acres. The average, pulled up by the largest operations, is 44 acres, 52nd-largest of 52 in California. The most common size class is 1–9 acres, with 68.5% of farms. Fewer than 1% of farms have 1,000 acres or more.

1–968%10–4921%50–1796%180–4993%500–9990%1,000–1,9991%2,000+0%
San Diego County US · farms by size

Barns, pens and pastures

AnimalsHeadShare of US
Laying hens1,094,3180.28%
Horses and ponies5,6940.24%
Goats1,9090.08%
Milk cows5,5050.06%
Sheep and lambs958under 0.1%
Cattle and calves14,656under 0.1%
Beef cows4,046under 0.1%
Turkeys581under 0.1%
Broilers sold in 202225,161under 0.1%

Withheld: hogs and pigs.

Who farms here

Decisions on San Diego County's 4,031 farms are made by 7,289 producers. Their average age is 62.2, 2.3 years above the California average. Women are 41.3% of them.

Under 354%35–449%45–5412%55–6427%65–7429%75+19%
San Diego County US · producers by age

Five years earlier

Measure2017Change to 2022
Farms5,082−20.7%
Land in farms, acres222,094−19.3%
Average farm size, acres440.0%
Farm products sold (current dollars)$831 million+31.5%
Citrus, acres8,445−34.0%
Orchard land, acres29,354−30.2%
Laying hens, head1,808,815−39.5%
Horses and ponies, head6,141−7.3%

Nearest rivals

Counties with a similar sales mix

San Diego County accounts for 1.9% of farm sales in California and 6.4% of the farms in California. Rank California counties for citrus.

Source: USDA NASS Census of Agriculture. How to read these pages.