The southern coastlands have a humid subtropical climate suitable for agriculture. Major crops include citrus fruits, sugarcane, and rice. Florida is a top producer of oranges and grapefruit, benefiting from a long growing season. The region also has amenities that attract retirees and tourists to its coastal areas. It faces natural hazards such as hurricanes and drought. The coastlands have important ports for trade, especially New Orleans, Houston, and Mobile. Offshore oil and gas production are major industries, concentrated around Houston and New Orleans. The eastern coastlands focus more on tourism, while the west centers on resources and manufacturing.

1. THE SOUTHERN COASTLANDS:
ON THE SUBTROPICAL MARGIN
(Chapter 10)

2. Introduction
• Division of southern margin of the
U.S. based on human geography
– Rio Grande east to North Carolina
– U.S.–Mexico border area (Chapter
14)
• Distinctions of southern coastlands
– Humid subtropical climate
– Location on the continental
margin
• Subregions
– East: Recreation, retirement
communities
– West: Resource extraction

4. Southern Coastlands (page 191)

6. Florida: East Amenities

7. Subtropical Environment
• Humid subtropical
climate
– Warm, humid summers
– Mild winters
– Long growing seasons
• Average growing season
– Longer than 10 months
– Southern Florida having
nearly 12 months
– Almost everywhere at
least 9 months

8. Subtropical Environment
(continued)
• Average rainfall greater
than 125 centimeters (50
inches), almost all in the
summer (April–October),
for ideal growing conditions
• Advantages for agriculture
– Can grow crops that cannot
be grown elsewhere
– Double-cropping possible
– Winter vegetables

9. Length of Growing Season
(page 192)

10. Citrus
• Introduced by Spanish in the 16th century
• Other producers
– Southern Texas
– California (only area to exceed Florida)
• Location
– South of 29 north latitude
– 40% between Tampa and Orlando
– Southward shift to avoid frost, but farther south soils are too
swampy
• Oranges and grapefruit most important
• Local processing (80% as concentrate)
• Labor-intensive, use of migrant labor

11. Citrus Production
Oranges Grapefruit

12. Citrus
Florida Oranges Texas Grapefruit

13. Sugar Cane
• Production
– Southern Coastlands
– Hawaii
• Tropical crop
– Full year to mature
– Non–frost tolerant
– Requires 125 centimeters (50
inches) rainfall
• Protected by federal import
controls and price supports

14. Sugarcane

15. Harvesting and loading sugar at Masterson Plantation.
Photograph courtesy of the Brazoria County Historical Museum.

16. Rice
• Fewer climate demands
than citrus or sugarcane—
requires sufficient water
• Irrigated
– Louisiana
– Texas (near Houston)
• Additional areas in
transition zone
– Mississippi Alluvial valley
– Mississippi and Arkansas

17. Rice Production
(page 385)

18. 'A rice-raft with plantation hands, near Georgetown, South Carolina'

19. Amenities
• Increased migration for amenities rather than economic
opportunity
– Outdoor climate similar to indoor climate
– Air conditioning
• Retirees (% population over 60 years of age)
• Tourism
– Coastal area from New Orleans to Mobile, coastal Mississippi
("Mississippi Riviera")
– Traditional focus Florida: beaches, Disneyworld, baseball
training camps, Cape Canaveral (Kennedy Space Center)
– Expansion north along Atlantic Coast
Florida Ohio Connecticut
1950 12.4 13.7 13.3
2000 22.2 17.4 17.7

20. New Orleans

21. Hazards
• Winter freeze
– Winter vegetables
– Citrus
– Need for cold temperatures
to kill disease organisms
Jan 12, 2010 Winterpark, FL

22. Hazards
• Hurricanes
– Intense solar
heating over
large bodies of
warm water
– Areas facing
tropical waters
of Caribbean,
southern
Atlantic, Gulf of
Mexico
– Occasional
massive storms:
• Hugo (1989)
• Andrew
(1992)
• Katrina
(2005)
• Ike (2008)

23. Hurricane Hazard Zones
(page 197)

24. Water
• Slow-acting hazard
– Adequate rainfall, close to ocean
– Withdrawing water faster than replacement
– Distant rivers
– Land too flat for reservoirs
• Urban areas far from rivers
– Need to pump water from underground water table
– Central Florida, Cape Canaveral to Tampa (includes Orlando)
• Sinkholes: loss of support of underground water

25. Lake Lanier, GA
• Drought…

26. • Major ports
– Large river
estuaries
– Anchorages
short distance
inland from river
mouths
• Sheltered bays
• New Orleans
most important
port and focus
Trade

28. • New Orleans most
important port and focus

29. Historic New Orleans

30. Houston, TX
• Houston: Houston Ship
Channel (1873)
• Access to hinterlands
– Rivers
– Railroads

34. Mobile, AL
Oakleigh Mansion
James Roper built this house in 1833. It was
named Oakleigh for the stately oak trees around
it. This antebellum (meaning before the Civil
War) home is now operated as a museum by
the Historic Mobile Preservation Society. It gives
us a partial view of what life was like in Mobile
during the nineteenth century.

35. Resources
• Continental shelf
– Extension of geological continent outward from coast
– Along Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico coasts extends 80
kilometers (50 miles)
– Extensive oil and gas deposits
• Top oil production states
– Texas
– Louisiana
– (Alaska)
• Political issues
• Environmental problems
• Natural gas in conjunction with petroleum
• Salt domes (rock salt)

36. Oil and Natural Gas Production
(page 202)

37. Industrial Development
• Petrochemical industry
– Natural gas and petroleum products
– Capital for industrial growth
• Corpus Christi, Texas, to Pascagoula, Mississippi
• Concentration around Houston, Beaumont, Port Arthur
– Important materials for other chemical industries
– Cheap water transportation to customers in
Megalopolis
• Aluminum
– Bauxite from Caribbean and South America
– Cheap water transportation, abundant local fuel

38. The Region’s Two Halves
• Eastern half
– Emphasizes environmental attractions
– Miami
• Recreation and travel
• Cuban Americans: Links to Latin America
• Western half
– Resources, manufacturing, trade
– Houston
• New Orleans
– Located between to halves
– Not as strong in either specialization