208 THE WHEAT INDUSTRY 



shown by the fact that it generally exports nearly 

 three fourths as much wheat as does the United 

 States. 



The Location of the Wheat-producing Area. The 

 wheat-producing regions are confined at present 

 almost entirely to the southeastern and south- 

 western parts of the continent. Of the two, the 

 southeastern district is by far the more important. 

 Some wheat is raised in the interior under irriga- 

 tion, but its quantity is not great. Still, in spite 

 of the localized areas, wheat is the most important 

 crop grown in Australia. This is shown by the 

 fact that of the arable land about 63 per cent is at 

 present planted to that crop, while there is but 

 17 per cent in hay, 6 per cent in oats, and 14 per 

 cent in other crops. 



The Climate of the Wheat-producing Area. The 

 climate is the chief factor which controls wheat 

 production. The northern and eastern parts of 

 the continent lie in the region of the southeast 

 trade winds. These winds bring moisture to the 

 eastern portion. To the westward there is a range 

 of mountains called the Australian Alps whose 

 altitude is so great that it serves to condense the 

 moisture on the east slopes and highlands and 

 leaves the western slopes dry. Since the western 

 plateaus are not high enough to cause condensa- 

 tion of moisture to any great extent, these condi- 

 tions produce a very dry, desert-like interior of 



