![]() ![]() Beef cattle and calves follow, with about 21 percent. Broiler chickens are the state’s primary agricultural commodity, generating about 31 percent of West Virginia’s total agricultural receipts. About 82 percent of West Virginia’s total agricultural production is in livestock products. West Virginia is a great place to raise livestock. In 1997, West Virginia designated their state soil as Monongahela silt loam, a productive agricultural soil found on river terraces in on more than 100,000 acres in 45 counties in West Virginia. ![]() Some of the best agricultural soils in West Virginia are located along the Ohio River along the northwestern border. However, the soil in river floodplains is more fertile, and limestone bedrock helps neutralize soil acidity. The soil at high elevations in the Eastern Allegheny and Cumberland Mountains in the eastern and southern parts of the state are especially rugged and low in fertility. West Virginia is known for shallow, acidic clay soil, which is not ideal for growing crops. Peaches and wheat are also grown in the state. Other major crops include apples (the state is the country’s 10th largest producer of apples), corn, soybeans and tobacco. Hay, which is grown to feed the state’s livestock, is West Virginia’s main crop. The majority of the state falls in zones 6a and 6b, with average winter low temperatures of -10 degrees Fahrenheit. The USDA hardiness zones in West Virginia range from 5a at the highest elevation in the east to 7a in the southwest around Charleston. The program offers technical and financial assistance to implement such practices as well. The West Virginia Agricultural Enhancement Program administered by the West Virginia Conservation Districts and the West Virginia Conservation Agency to encourage the voluntary implementation of best management practices on West Virginia agricultural lands in order to conserve and improve land and water quality for all West Virginia residents. A person must be at least 18 years of age to start a business in West Virginia, but the registration fee can be waived if you are a veteran or a West Virginia-resident young entrepreneur between the ages of 18 to 29. Working farms must register as a business with the state of West Virginia. The average cost per acre for cropland was $3,280 and $2,120 for pasture.Īccording to the USDA’s 2018 State Agriculture Overview, West Virginia has 3.6 million acres of farmland and 23,400 farms. According to 2019 data from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), the average cost of farm real estate in West Virginia was $2,680 per acre, compared to the national average of $3,160 that same year. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |