On the coastal plains agricultural activity has been going on since the beginning of settlements. Vegetables and fruits are produced in large quantity. In the Piedmont area corn, wheat, hay and oats are produced. In the Allegheny plateau hay, corns and other grains are produced. In the Midwest region of the U.S. Central lowlands are agriculturally rich areas. The lands are suitable for the production of corn, sugar beets and other crops. The Corn. Belt region is leading region in the agricultural production of the country. Oats, barley, wheat, soyabeans and hay crops are planted. Winter and spring wheat is produced in the central lowland and the Great Plains region. Fruits are produced along the shores of the lakes. The eastern shore of Lake Michigan is the main fruit producing area of the country. Apples, peaches, pears, cherries and raspberries are grown with care and labour.
The wheat belts of the Great Plains produce wheat both in winter and spring. Agriculture in this region is extensive. Big farms have been made. Grazing is the leading industry of the region. In the South U.S. coastal plains have primarily agricultural occupation. The climate being suitable, the area produces, corn, cotton peanuts, soyabeans, tobacco. Rio Granade valley is deficient in rains and therefore it requires irrigation. Cotton is produced here in large quantity and the region is known as Cotton Belt of U.S.A. Piedmont region is also very productive. Tobacco is the leading cash crop in the state of Virginia. North Carolina does not lag behind in this respect. In the western parts of U.S.A. the North Rocky region is mainly engaged in grazing and pasturing. In southern Rocky terrain is so rugged that agriculture is not possible. In the Intermontane plateaus, Basins and Ranges much of the region is used for grazing cattle. Great Basin falls in the rain shadow position. Therefore, it lacks sufficient precipitation for agriculture.
(1) Wheat Belt: There are two great wheat- areas:
1. One in the northwest where the crop is spring wheat and the other in the middle where it is winter wheat.
Other important wheat areas are in the northwestern states of Washington etc., where the lava soils occur, and in the California valley.
2. Maize or Corn Bell : The maize belt or corn belt lies partly between the two wheat belts and partly overlaps the winter wheat belt. The Central Mississippi basin is really the great corn region of the U.S.A.
3) The Cotton Bell: It is bounded on the north by the invisible line marking the limit of 200 days free from frost, and on the west, generally by the meridian 100 W, beyond which the rainfall is insufficient for cultivation without recourse to irrigation.
The Cotton belt: It occurs to the south of the Corn Belt. Roughly the belt lies to the south of the junction of the Ohio with the Mississippi to the Gulf of Mexico. These belts are also developed to some extend with the cultivation of oats, barley, tobacco, rice, sugarcane, soyabean, potatoes, Rye and sorghum.
4) The Sub-Tropical Bell : Fringing the Gulf of Mexico and including the Peninsula of Florida, produces sugar-cane, rice, and warm temperate and sub-tropical fruits.
5) The Ranching and Dry Farming Belts lie in the region of scantly rainfall stretching from longitude 100° W. to the Rockies.
6) The dairy pasture, Hay and Mixed Farming Belt lies south of the coniferous forests in the region round the Great Lakes and extends north-eastward through the St. Lawrence Lowlands. The relatively damp climate favors dairying, and the many towns provide a ready market for produce.
7) In the Mediterranean Region of Central California enormous quantities of warm temperate fruits and vegetables are grown on irrigated lands.
Animal life: With its large resources in fodder, the United States has the largest animal husbandry in the world. Pigs, cattle and sheep are the most important. Pigs are important in the east, where mixed farming and maize Predominate. Cattle are important in the west where plenty of pasturage and land to roam about occurs. The mountainous part of the west is the most important for sheep. Based on these animals, is a very important canning industry particularly the meat-packing industry the centre, of which lies chiefly in the Corn Belt, which provides cheap and efficient fatteners. The other animals are Milch cows, Hogs and sheep.
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