

I i G ire 3. — Forest and farm lands characteristic of the mountain region. A, In the less rugged mountains most of the steep slopes are forested, the lower slopes 

 are grazed, and the valleys and flat benches are cultivated or grazed. B, Fields, pastures, and woodlands are intermingled on the gentle terrain of the 

 piedmont. 



containing scattered pond pine) and treeless savannas 

 are characteristic features of the landscape near the coast. 

 The tidewater country seldom rises more than 50 feet above 

 sea level but the western Coastal Plain proper rises gradu- 

 ually by a series of terraces to an elevation of about 500 

 teet at its western margin. Cultivated fields are commonly 

 restricted to the better-drained soils throughout the 



Coastal Plain and where drainage is poor the land is usually 

 torested (fig. 4). Timber stands are not confined to the 

 wettest sites, however, lor trees grow on nearly two-thirds 

 cf all the land. About one-half cf the State's forest area 

 is in the Coastal Plain. 



The Blue Ridge Mountains divide the rivers that flow 

 into the Gulf ot Mexico from those that flow into the Atlan- 



