To help understand this setting that has been critical to life in Virginia for thousands of years, geographers have identified five physical regions in the state: the Coastal Plain (Tidewater), Piedmont, Blue Ridge Mountains, Valley and Ridge, and Appalachian Plateau.

Virginia’s Piedmont region contains the rolling foothills and river valleys between the Coastal Plain and the Blue Ridge Mountains. This area offers 13 loops to explore expansive grasslands, forests, pineland savannahs, and large reservoirs.

Piedmont is characterised by a significant industrial tradition, with a specialisation in the automotive industry (FCA is the largest Italian company). Large firms and SMEs co-exist forming strong and thick value chains.

The Piedmont Province is a physiographic province of the larger Appalachian division which consists of the Gettysburg-Newark Lowlands, the Piedmont Upland and the Piedmont Lowlands sections. The Atlantic Seaboard fall line marks the Piedmont’s eastern boundary with the Coastal Plain.

The Piedmont is the area lying between the Atlantic Ocean and the Appalachian Mountains. The Triad is named for the three largest cities in the region: Greensboro, Winston-Salem, and High Point.

It comprises a relatively low rolling plateau (from 300 to 1,800 feet [90 to 550 m]) cut by many rivers and is a fertile agricultural region. Cotton is the most important crop in the southern areas, while tobacco and fruit predominate in the north.

Snapping turtles, beavers, and river otters thrive in the Piedmont Region. Shoal bass, sunfish, and catfish live in the rivers. The Piedmont is home to birds like the Red-Cockaded Woodpecker (pictured) and the Mourning Dove. The Piedmont is also home to white-tailed deer and coyote.

Topographically, the Piedmont is made up of low hills and narrow valleys. The worn-down rocks of the Piedmont region pass below the sedimentary rocks of the Atlantic Coastal Plain for more than 150 miles from the fall line.

Coastal Plain region

Regions

• Regions.
• The state of Georgia extends from the Atlantic Ocean into the Blue Ridge Mountains.
• The regions are the Coastal Plain, the Piedmont Region, the Blue Ridge Region, the Valley and Ridge Region, and the Appalachian Plateau.
• Each of the regions has its own unique features.

The Lower Coastal Plain features the sandy and nutrient-poor soils of the state’s coastal islands and Okefenokee Swamp.

Top 50 Atlanta Trees

• Trident Maple. Scientific Name: Acer buergerianum.
• Downy Serviceberry. Scientific Name: Amelanchier arborea.
• Devil’s Walkingstick. Scientific Name: Aralia spinosa.
• River birch. Scientific Name: Betula nigra.
• American Hornbeam. Scientific Name: Carpinus caroliniana.
• Pawpaw.
• Mockernut Hickory.
• Deodar Cedar.

COASTAL PLAINS

In the United States, coastal plains can be found along the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico. Coastal plains can form in two basic ways. Some start as a continental shelf, a flat piece of land located below sea level. When the ocean level falls, the land is exposed, creating a coastal plain.

The coastal plain is normally wet, including many rivers, marsh, and swampland. It is composed primarily of sedimentary rock and unlithified sediments and is primarily used for agriculture. The Atlantic Coastal Plain includes the Carolina Sandhills region as well as the Embayed and Sea Island physiographic provinces.

Features of the Pacific Coast region include coastal areas, mountain ranges, and forests.