Ornamental trees and shrubs were the most valuable agriculture product in San Diego County last year, for the third year in a row, according to the 2011 Crop Statistics and Annual Report released today by the county Department of Agriculture, Weights and Measures.
Ornamental trees and shrubs brought in $384.4 million last year, a slide of about $34 million from 2010, according to the report. Second was indoor flowering plants and foliage, worth $320.9 million, an increase in value of about $28 million from the previous year.
Bedding plants were worth $213.9 million, while avocados were valued at $208.1 million, a gain of more than $60 million.
Other major crops were tomatoes, eggs, lemons, cacti and succulents, herbs and foliage.
The total value of agricultural products produced in San Diego County last year was $1.68 billion, a 2 percent increase over the year before. The number of acres devoted to farming or ranching dropped by 1 percent to 300,786.
The report says that agriculture products from San Diego County were shipped to 45 countries, with about two-thirds going to Mexico and most of the rest to Canada.
Almost 350 organic farmers produced more than 150 different crops in the region. The most popular by acreage were avocados, oranges and lemons.
