Farm Census

Rockingham County, Virginia

Farms, crops and livestock in the 2022 Census of Agriculture

1,722 farms191,588 acres in farms$1.20 billion in farm sales

Among US counties with published figures, Rockingham County ranks third for broilers sold and fourth for turkeys.

Within Virginia, no other county with a published figure has more farms, corn for silage, milk cows or laying hens, or sells more farm products.

Poultry and eggs: 79.6%Poultry and eggs79.6%Milk: 10.0%Milk10.0%Cattle and calves: 3.8%3.8%Grains and oilseeds: 3.1%3.1%Nursery and greenhouse: 1.6%1.6%Withheld groups: 0.9%0.9%Hay and other crops: 0.6%0.6%Vegetables and melons: 0.2%Sheep and goats: 0.1%Other animals: under 0.1%Hogs and pigs: under 0.1%Poultry and eggs: 79.6%Poultry and eggs79.6%Milk: 10.0%Milk10.0%Cattle and calves: 3.8%3.8%Grains and oilseeds: 3.1%3.1%Nursery and greenhouse: 1.6%1.6%Withheld groups: 0.9%Hay and other crops: 0.6%Vegetables and melons: 0.2%Sheep and goats: 0.1%Other animals: under 0.1%Hogs and pigs: under 0.1%
Farm sales by product group, 2022, sized by value. Withheld to protect individual farms: fruit and nuts, Christmas trees, horses and mules and aquaculture products.
Sales by product group
Product groupSalesRank in state
Poultry and eggs$953 million1st of 77
Milk from cows$120 million1st of 26
Cattle and calves$45.3 million4th of 82
Grains, oilseeds, dry beans and dry peas$37.7 million2nd of 90
Nursery, greenhouse and floriculture crops$19.3 million4th of 64
Hay and other crops$7.6 million2nd of 82
Vegetables, melons and potatoes$1.8 million10th of 75
Sheep, goats, wool, mohair and goat milk$1.2 million3rd of 73
Other animals and animal products$184,0009th of 63
Hogs and pigs$131,00013th of 51

What the fields held

Rockingham County harvested 93,997 acres of cropland in 2022, first of 97 counties in Virginia. Hay and haylage covered acreage equal to 46% of that, corn for grain 20%.

CropAcresShare of US
Hay and haylage43,5840.08%
Corn for grain19,120under 0.1%
Corn for silage13,1060.22%
Soybeans12,826under 0.1%
Wheat4,868under 0.1%
Orchard land1,700under 0.1%
of which grapes33under 0.1%
Barley749under 0.1%
Vegetables254under 0.1%
of which potatoes11under 0.1%
Grain sorghum123under 0.1%
Berries22under 0.1%

Withheld to protect individual farms: sunflower, canola and apples.

How much of the county is farmland

Share of the county land in farms34.5%

Rockingham County ranks 31st of 97 counties in Virginia on this measure.

  • 103,499 acres of cropland, 54% of farmland
  • 61,473 acres of pastureland, 32% of farmland
  • 22,884 acres of woodland, 12% of farmland
  • 4,291 acres irrigated

Farm sizes

The typical farm in Rockingham County is smaller than the national median of 72 acres, at 46 acres. The average, pulled up by the largest operations, is 111 acres, 80th-largest of 85 in Virginia. The most common size class is 10–49 acres, with 37.0% of farms. Fewer than 1% of farms have 1,000 acres or more.

1–914%10–4937%50–17932%180–49913%500–9993%1,000–1,9991%2,000+0%
Rockingham County US · farms by size

Barns, pens and pastures

AnimalsHeadShare of US
Turkeys2,483,3172.6%
Broilers sold in 2022112,754,4971.2%
Milk cows20,2420.22%
Laying hens641,5100.17%
Sheep and lambs5,7900.11%
Cattle and calves87,5650.10%
Goats2,2810.09%
Beef cows23,4880.08%
Horses and ponies1,2110.05%
Hogs and pigs282under 0.1%

Who farms here

Decisions on Rockingham County's 1,722 farms are made by 3,142 producers. Their average age is 55.1, 4.1 years below the Virginia average. Women are 37.6% of them.

Under 3512%35–4416%45–5415%55–6426%65–7422%75+9%
Rockingham County US · producers by age

Five years earlier

Measure2017Change to 2022
Farms2,026−15.0%
Land in farms, acres228,542−16.2%
Average farm size, acres113−1.8%
Farm products sold (current dollars)$796 million+50.4%
Turkeys, head2,669,874−7.0%
Broilers sold, head108,888,122+3.6%
Corn for silage, acres20,818−37.0%
Milk cows, head28,529−29.0%

Nearest rivals

Counties with a similar sales mix

Rockingham County accounts for 21.8% of farm sales in Virginia and 4.4% of the farms in Virginia. Rank Virginia counties for turkeys.

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