Gulf Coast Agriculture
Citrus, sugar cane, and rice are the major specialty crops grown on the Gulf Coast. Sugar cane is grown primarily in Louisiana and Texas. [Other than southern Florida] this is the only place in the 48 contiguous states where sugar cane can be grown, because of its need for abundant rainfall (over 50 inches/year) and its sensitivity to frost. Mild winters also make the Gulf Coast region a major supplier of vegetables to the northeastern US in the winter months.
Amenity Attractions and Florida's Population Boom
The mild climate of the Gulf Coast also contributes to making it a major recreation, tourism, and retirement destination. The Texas and Louisiana coasts receive their share of visitors, but the greatest impact of tourism has been on Florida. Since the 1960s, Florida consistently has had one of the highest total population growth rates of any state in the US. The area from Miami Beach to Palm Beach has become the center of the recreation industry in Florida, although it also extends as far up the coast as North Carolina. One single attraction, Walt Disney World, has completely changed the economic geography of central Florida, around Orlando. By attracting more than 25 million visitors a year, Disney World has contributed to the development of a Miami-Orlando-Tampa Megalopolis across the state. …show more content…
In part this is because these coastlines were not shaped by continental glacial processes as were those farther to the north. Instead, the land areas were created by the gradual filling in of swamps and marshes on the continental fringe. This process continues today off the coastlines of the South. With the exception of the Mississippi River, it is not possible to navigate very far inland up the rivers and bays of the South because they are too
Citrus, sugar cane, and rice are the major specialty crops grown on the Gulf Coast. Sugar cane is grown primarily in Louisiana and Texas. [Other than southern Florida] this is the only place in the 48 contiguous states where sugar cane can be grown, because of its need for abundant rainfall (over 50 inches/year) and its sensitivity to frost. Mild winters also make the Gulf Coast region a major supplier of vegetables to the northeastern US in the winter months.
Amenity Attractions and Florida's Population Boom
The mild climate of the Gulf Coast also contributes to making it a major recreation, tourism, and retirement destination. The Texas and Louisiana coasts receive their share of visitors, but the greatest impact of tourism has been on Florida. Since the 1960s, Florida consistently has had one of the highest total population growth rates of any state in the US. The area from Miami Beach to Palm Beach has become the center of the recreation industry in Florida, although it also extends as far up the coast as North Carolina. One single attraction, Walt Disney World, has completely changed the economic geography of central Florida, around Orlando. By attracting more than 25 million visitors a year, Disney World has contributed to the development of a Miami-Orlando-Tampa Megalopolis across the state. …show more content…
In part this is because these coastlines were not shaped by continental glacial processes as were those farther to the north. Instead, the land areas were created by the gradual filling in of swamps and marshes on the continental fringe. This process continues today off the coastlines of the South. With the exception of the Mississippi River, it is not possible to navigate very far inland up the rivers and bays of the South because they are too