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C. Agriculture Section Navigation: The landscape of Darby Watershed is predominately agricultural. Land in the Darby Watershed is some of the most productive land in the state for corn and soybeans (See Figure 32). Much of the watershed is composed of land that is rated as prime farmland or prime when adequately drained. Glacial activity left a layer of fertile topsoil that, with the proper drainage, is well-suited for agriculture. The identification and protection of prime farmland is important to the agricultural community. A series of 4 maps has been created illustrating a detailed look at prime farmland in the watershed (see Prime Farmland section below). According to the 1997 USDA Agricultural census, 73 percent of land in the 6 county area was farmed. This figured dropped to 71 percent in the 2002 Agricultural Census. The Hybrid Land Use data in Figure 16 estimates a total of 73.5 percent agricultural land in the Darby Watershed. Approximately 85 percent of all cropland in the six county area is utilized for corn and soybeans. The data in the following Figures 32-38 are for the entire county listed and is not specific to the boundaries of the Darby Creek Watershed. (Note: In the following tables, “D” was used so that information regarding individual farms would not be disclosed.)
Source: USDA, Agricultural Census, 1997, 2002
Source: USDA, Agricultural Census, 1997, 2002
Source: USDA, Agricultural Census, 1997, 2002
Source: USDA, Agricultural Census, 1997, 2002
Source: USDA, Agricultural Census, 2002
Source: USDA, Agricultural Census, 1997, 2002 Figure 36 summarizes information from the U.S. Agricultural Census of 2002 for each county inside the watershed. Figure 37 compares the difference in farm size and total number of farms between the 1997 and 2002 data. Again, this data is not specific to the boundaries of the Darby Watershed. The data in figure 33 and 37 both illustrate the changing landscape in Darby Watershed. In figure 33 both Union and Franklin County had a significant drop in the amount of land that was planted in soybeans, corn, wheat, and hay. Both of these counties are also experiencing the most intense development pressure from the Columbus Metropolitan area and the city of Marysville . The fragmentation of the landscape by rural housing sprawl creates a hardship for the agricultural community by increasing transportation time and costs and complicating planting and harvest on smaller fields. In the watershed the average farm size has decreased considerably in only 5 years as seen in figure 37. Some possible contributions to the smaller average farm size are increased population, fragmentation of the landscape, and diversification of the agricultural community. Figure 38 compares the amount and types of fertilizers or chemicals applied in each county for the years of 1997 and 2002.
Source: USDA, Agricultural Census, 2002 *1997. Data did not include Lime ** Insect data also includes Nematodes Section Navigation:
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