Guide to Pennsylvania Agriculture

Credit: Penn State Extension

Geographical and Economic Scope

The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is the largest agricultural state in the northeastern United States. A temperate climate, relatively long growing season, good soils, and easy access to markets make Pennsylvania prime habitat for agriculture. Farms are relatively abundant in Pennsylvania and commonly can be found in both rural and suburbanizing parts of the Commonwealth.

Pennsylvania is the fourth largest producer of nursery and greenhouse products in the United States and the largest producer of mushrooms. Many of its farms sell directly to consumers. More than 59,000 farms currently operate in Pennsylvania, using 7.7 million acres of land and providing direct livelihood to 65,487 people. Pennsylvania farms produced over $7.4 billion worth of commodities and products in 2012. Agriculturally related support activities, such as custom planting and harvesting, employ an additional 7,516 people, and food processing firms directly employ another 66,957 people.

 

How to identify farms

Depending on the type of farm, acreage can range from a few acres to several hundred acres. Farm size varies drastically in Pennsylvania. Just over half (52%) of the farms have less than $10,000 in annual sales– a level that some people consider “hobby” or part-time farms, in part, because they generally do not provide enough income by themselves for the farm family to survive. In fact, the majority of such farms actually lose money each year.

About 20% of Pennsylvania farms have more than $100,000 in annual sales. These farms account for the vast majority (91%) of Pennsylvania’s agricultural production. Generally, only these large farms are able to provide enough income for the farm family to survive. Off-farm jobs provide important and needed supplemental income on many of the medium-sized farms. These farms most often conform to popular images of “family farms.” The largest incorporated farms, in contrast, are nothing like the “corporate farms” often denigrated in popular culture– these farms are incorporated for tax or legal reasons, but most are entirely family owned and run.

The largest farms– those with annual sales over $1 million– account for only 2% of all Pennsylvania farms. But these 1,260 farms made up more than 46% of all Pennsylvania agricultural product sales in 2012.

Many farming activities are dependent on season and weather conditions and can be very time sensitive. During planting or harvest time, for example, the delay of a day or two  an affect the value of the crop, costing the farmer hundreds or even thousands of dollars. This means, as a farm watcher, you may find farmers doing field work very early in the morning or late at night.

Farm Types

Field Crop

About 8,445 Pennsylvania farms receive more than half of their farm income from the sale of corn, wheat, oats, soybeans, or other grains and oilseeds. An additional 10,372 farms rely on hay for the majority of their sales. These field crop farms generally sell grains and oilseeds to local feed mills and hay to other farmers. Note that many other farm types raise these crops as feed for their own animals.

The most common field crops in 2012 included winter wheat (144,725 acres harvested), oats (65,158 acres harvested), soybeans (519,718 acres harvested), and corn for grain (998,376 acres harvested). About 1,651,917 acres of hay were harvested, including 400,984 acres of alfalfa hay and 710,021 acres of other hay (such as timothy grass).

Field crop farms are busy from the spring through the fall when the crops are in the field. Field crop farms have a lax period in the winter. Many field crop farms rent land from neighbors.

Fruit and Berry

Pennsylvania had 3,147 farms producing fruit or berries in 2012, with 1,969 receiving more than half of their farm income from such sales. This included 1,029 farms that primarily focused on apples, 616 on grapes, 722 on berries, and 522 on peaches. Apples are Pennsylvania’s most common fruit crop, with 21,556 acres of orchards in 2012. Grapes are the second most common, with 12,415 acres, and peaches are third, with 4,831 acres. Other common fruits include pears, tart cherries, and sweet cherries.

Most of the fruit harvest in Pennsylvania is done by migrant workers. Fruit farms generally raise several types and varieties of fruit to even out their labor needs over the season, making it easier to find and keep workers. Cherries ripen in late June or early July. Peaches are harvested from August through October depending on the variety, with the majority being harvested in August. Apples are harvested from July to October, again depending on the variety, with the main harvest in September and October. Apple  growers may have 5 to 10 (or more) different varieties of apples, with some early and late ripening varieties selected, in part, to spread out the harvest season.

The workload on fruit farms varies tremendously through the year. During the winter, fruit farmers need to prune or trim their trees to keep them healthy. In the early spring when the flowers are blooming, they place rented bee hives in the orchards to increase pollination. Later in the spring, they spray the trees to help prevent diseases and insect infestations. During the summer and fall, fruit is harvested. Every 15 to 30 years they have to replace the trees, depending on the type of tree, growing systems, density, and other factors. When trees get too old, they become more prone to disease and their productivity drops.

Most (75%) of Pennsylvania’s apple harvest is used to make juice and cider, apple sauce, and pie fillings or otherwise processed. Their percentage is higher in Adams County (around Gettysburg), where most of the major fruit processors are located, and much lower in other parts of the state. Many fruit farms in these other counties sell directly to consumers through roadside farm stands and farmers’ markets. Some sell through local grocery stores.

Vegetable

Pennsylvania’s 3,968 farms growing vegetables planted 48,622 acres of vegetable crops in 2012. About 30% were vegetables for processing. About one-quarter (26%) of the vegetable acreage harvested was sweet corn, 22% were snap beans, 18% were potatoes, and 5% were tomatoes. About 1,693 of these farms received more than half of their total sales from vegetables.

Vegetable farms tend to be smaller than other farm types. They typically rely on migrant or family labor. Just under half of the vegetable farms are less than 50 acres in size. Most vegetable farms sell directly to consumers through roadside farm stands, farmers’ markets, or other direct marking.

Many Pennsylvania vegetable farms have begun using hoop houses, which are sometimes called high tunnel houses, to extend their growing season. The hoop house allows them to start vegetables earlier in the year, as well as extend harvest into the late fall or early winter.

For more information on Pennsylvania agriculture, visit extension.psu.edu