Iller-Lech Plateau
Encyclopedia
The Iller-Lech Plateau also known as the Upper Swabian Plateau (Oberschwäbische Hochebene), is one of the natural regions of Germany
Natural regions of Germany
This division of Germany into major natural regions takes account primarily of geomorphological, geological, hydrological and pedological criteria in order to divide the country into large, physical units with a common geographical basis...

.

Boundaries

In the northwest the Iller-Lech Plateau borders on the Swabian Jura (unit D60 on the map) and, in the extreme northeast, on the Franconian Jura
Franconian Jura
The Franconian Jura is an upland in Bavaria, Germany. Located between two rivers, the Danube in the south and the Main in the north, its peaks reach elevations of up to .Large portions of the Franconian Jura are part of the Altmühl Valley Nature Park...

 (unit D61 on the map). The boundary with these two natural regions is roughly formed by the course of the river Danube
Danube
The Danube is a river in the Central Europe and the Europe's second longest river after the Volga. It is classified as an international waterway....

.

In the east the Iller-Lech Plateau borders on the Lower Bavarian Uplands and Isar-Inn Gravel Plateaus (unit D65 on the map). North of Augsburg
Augsburg
Augsburg is a city in the south-west of Bavaria, Germany. It is a university town and home of the Regierungsbezirk Schwaben and the Bezirk Schwaben. Augsburg is an urban district and home to the institutions of the Landkreis Augsburg. It is, as of 2008, the third-largest city in Bavaria with a...

 its eastern boundary runs roughly parallel to state road 2035 (Augsburg-Pöttmes
Pöttmes
Pöttmes is a municipality in the district of Aichach-Friedberg in Bavaria in Germany....

-Neuburg an der Donau
Neuburg an der Donau
Neuburg an der Donau, literally Neuburg on the Danube River, is a town which is the capital of the Neuburg-Schrobenhausen district in the state of Bavaria in Germany.-Divisions:The municipality has 16 divisions:-History:...

), south of Augsburg east of the Lech, roughly between Mering
Mering
Mering is a municipality in the district Aichach-Friedberg, in Bavaria, Germany. It is located on the river Paar.First mentioned in record in 1021, Mering has a long history....

, Geltendorf
Geltendorf
Geltendorf is a municipality in the district of Landsberg in Bavaria, Germany.-World heritage site:It is home to one or more prehistoric pile-dwelling settlements that are part of the Prehistoric Pile dwellings around the Alps UNESCO World Heritage Site....

 and Schongau
Schongau
Schongau may refer to:*Schongau, Bavaria, a town in Germany*Schongau, Lucerne, a commune in Switzerland...

.

To the south the Southern Alpine Foreland
Bavarian Alpine Foreland
The Bavarian Alpine Foreland refers to the region of plateau and rolling foothills south of the Danube and north of the Bavarian Alps. It has been shaped under the influence of the ice ages and has a rich variety of landscape forms...

 (D66 on the map) borders on the Iller-Lech Plateau. The boundary between these two natural regions is partly formed by the terminal moraine
Terminal moraine
A terminal moraine, also called end moraine, is a moraine that forms at the end of the glacier called the snout.Terminal moraines mark the maximum advance of the glacier. An end moraine is at the present boundary of the glacier....

s of the Würm glaciation.

Sub-divisions

The sub-divisions are based upon the natural regions of Germany as shown on the BfN
BFN
BFN is a three-letter acronym that may refer to:* Internet slang for "Bye for now"* In computer science, the Backus Normal Form or Backus–Naur Form is a notation technique for context-free grammars...

's Landscapes in Germany map. In the following table these sub-divisions are described from west to east. For the exact location and boundaries of the individual sub-divisions: see the BfN's map Landscapes in Germany (http://www.bfn.de/geoinfo/landscapes/)

Sub-divisions in Baden-Württemberg

Geographical location Formation Relief Soil / Land use Remarks
Danube-Ablach
Ablach (Danube)
The Ablach is a right tributary of the Danube. It rises on the European Watershed, which is only a hint in this area, from the Mindersdorfer Aach in the municipality of Hohenfels in the Landkreis of Konstanz...

 Plateaus

Region between Danube, Mühlingen
Mühlingen
Mühlingen is a town in the district of Konstanz in Baden-Württemberg in Germany....

, Pfullendorf
Pfullendorf
Pfullendorf is a small historic city in the district of Sigmaringen in Baden-Württemberg in Germany.-Geography:Its location is in the district of Sigmaringen, 25 km north of Lake Constance and south of the Danube valley and therefore on the continental divide between the watersheds of the...

, Ostrach
Ostrach
Ostrach is a municipality in the district of Sigmaringen in Baden-Württemberg in Germany.-Geography:Ostrach lies between the Danube and Lake Constance, about halfway between Sigmaringen and Ravensburg. It lies on the brook of the same name, which passes through a narrow pass between the glacial...

, Bad Saulgau
Bad Saulgau
Bad Saulgau is a town in the district of Sigmaringen, in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is situated 23 km east of Sigmaringen, and 27 km north of Ravensburg between the Danube and Lake Constance....

 and Federsee
Federsee
Federsee is a lake located just north of Bad Buchau in the region of Upper Swabia in Southern Germany. It is surrounded by moorland, partially overgrown with reeds. With a size of 33 km² , the area is one of the largest, groundwater fed, connected moorlands in Southern Germany. At its deepest...


Old Drift landscape dominated by the Rift and Mindel glaciation of the Rhine Glacier

Gently rolling hill country
  • Decalcified, waterlogged, brown earth (Parabraunerde) in the valleys to great depth, hence meadow and pasture land
  • Alternation of open landscape in valleys and forested ridges (pine forests)
  • On good soils: arable land
Danube Valley between Mengen
Mengen
Mengen is a quiet, rural town and district in Bolu province in the Black Sea region of western Turkey, 58 km from the city of Bolu. It covers an area of 895 km², and the population is 16,504 of which 5,500 live in the town of Mengen...

 and Ulm
Ulm
Ulm is a city in the federal German state of Baden-Württemberg, situated on the River Danube. The city, whose population is estimated at 120,000 , forms an urban district of its own and is the administrative seat of the Alb-Donau district. Ulm, founded around 850, is rich in history and...

, Lower Riß Valley
Riß
The Riss is a small river in Baden-Württemberg, south-western Germany, right tributary of the Danube. Its source is in Upper Swabia, between Bad Waldsee and Bad Schussenried. It flows north, through the town of Biberach an der Riss. It then flows into the Danube between Ehingen and Erbach,...


Danube Valley between Mengen and Ulm, region between Herbertingen
Herbertingen
Herbertingen is a municipality in the district of Sigmaringen in Baden-Württemberg in Germany.-Municipality:Herbertingen forms the municipality with Hundersingen, Marbach and Mieterkingen.-Archeological location:...

 and Bad Saulgau, Riß Valley from Schemmerhofen
Schemmerhofen
Schemmerhofen is a municipality in the district of Biberach in Upper Swabia.-Geography:Schemmerhofen is situated north of Biberach an der Riß. The formerly autonomous villages of Schemmerberg, Ingerkingen, Altheim, Aßmannshardt and Alberweiler are administratively part of Schemmerhofen...

 to where it joins the Danube
  • From Mengen to the narrow gap by the southermost outliers of the Swabian Jura the floor of the Danube Valley is filled with Würm Ice Age gravels from the Rhine Glacier
    Rhine Glacier
    The Rhine Glacier was a glacier during the Last glacial period which is responsible for the formation of the Lake Constance....

  • Beyond this gap the Danube flows through a scoured basin of reed marsh

Flat

Much grassland and arable farming

The Riß valley from the south which merges into the Danube valley is more marshy that the Danube valley
Federsee Ried
Federsee
Federsee is a lake located just north of Bad Buchau in the region of Upper Swabia in Southern Germany. It is surrounded by moorland, partially overgrown with reeds. With a size of 33 km² , the area is one of the largest, groundwater fed, connected moorlands in Southern Germany. At its deepest...


The Federsee lies in the middle of this natural region near Bad Buchau
Bad Buchau
Bad Buchau is a small town in the district of Biberach, Baden-Württemberg, Germany with about 4,000 inhabitants. It is situated near the Federsee, which is separated from the town by a wide reed belt....

  • Former tongue-basins (central basin) from the Riß glaciation with the extensive silted-up areas (Verlandungsgebieten)
  • In the south the silted-up areas give way to Young Drift

Flat
  • On the silted-up ares there is extensive pastureland in places
  • In the transition zone between the silted-up areas and the Young Drift moraines the reeds and wetlands vegetation gives way to stands of coniferous forest

Because the lake has since been filled with sediment and gravel in places, the natural dammed lake was once much large
Western Plain of the Lower Riß

Region between Danube, Riß and, roughly, the B 312

Tertiary hills, in places however also ice age gravel deposits

Hilly

Agricultural land use predominates because the soils are loamy and fertile

The Bussen
Bussen
The Bussen is a mountain in southern Germany, in the region of Upper Swabia, with an elevation of 787 metres . It is also known as the Holy Mountain of Upper Swabia. It is situated on the border between the Swabian Alb and Upper Swabia proper...

 is in this region
Western and Eastern Riß-Aitrach
Aitrach (Iller)
Aitrach is a river of Baden-Württemberg, Germany....

 Plateaus
  • Western boundary: Schemmerhofen
    Schemmerhofen
    Schemmerhofen is a municipality in the district of Biberach in Upper Swabia.-Geography:Schemmerhofen is situated north of Biberach an der Riß. The formerly autonomous villages of Schemmerberg, Ingerkingen, Altheim, Aßmannshardt and Alberweiler are administratively part of Schemmerhofen...

     – Federsee – Bad Waldsee
    Bad Waldsee
    Bad Waldsee is a town in Upper Swabia in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is part of the district of Ravensburg, in Oberschwaben. It is situated 20 km south of Biberach an der Riß, and 20 km northeast of Ravensburg. The town is known for its historic old city with many landmarks and large...

  • Northern boundary: Schemmerhofen – Ochsenhausen
    Ochsenhausen
    Ochsenhausen is a city in the district of Biberach, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is located between the city of Biberach and Memmingen. it has a population of 8,916...

  • Eastern boundary: Ochsenhausen – Aitrach
    Aitrach
    Aitrach is a municipality in the district of Ravensburg in Baden-Württemberg in Germany....

     – Legau
    Legau
    Legau is a municipality in the district of Unterallgäu in Bavaria, Germany....

  • Southern boundary: Bad forestsee – Leutkirch im Allgäu
    Leutkirch im Allgäu
    Leutkirch im Allgäu is a city in south-eastern Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is part of the district of Ravensburg, in the western, Württembergish part of the Allgäu region. It belongs to the administrative region of Tübingen....

  • Boundary between the Western and Eastern Riß-Aitrach
    Aitrach (Iller)
    Aitrach is a river of Baden-Württemberg, Germany....

     Plateaus: Bad Waldsee - Eberhardzell
    Eberhardzell
    Eberhardzell is a town in the district of Biberach in Baden-Württemberg in Germany....


Riß glaciation terminal or ground moraine landscape

Undulating
  • Western part: arable land dominates due to the covering of loess, grassland in the wet valleys
  • Eastern part: much of the landscape is wet or boggy; mainly open landscape with meadows and pastures

The Wurzach Ried is in the east of the Riß-Aitrach Plateau
Holzstöcke

Region between Senden
Senden
The town of Senden is the second-largest town of the district of Neu-Ulm in Bavaria and is located at the border to Baden-Württemberg. The town belongs to the Donau-Iller-Nahverkehrsverbund...

, Aichstetten
Aichstetten
Aichstetten is a municipality in the district of Ravensburg in Baden-Württemberg in Germany....

, Ochsenhausen and Laupheim
Laupheim
Laupheim is a city in southern Germany in the state of Baden Württemberg. Laupheim was first mentioned in 778 and gained its city rights in 1869. One of the main trading routes, from Ulm to Ravensburg and then on towards Lake Constance ran through Laupheim...

  • Part of the ice-age formed terraced landscape between Riß and Iller
    Iller
    The Iller is a river in Bavaria, Germany. It is a right tributary of the Danube, 147 km in length.The source is located near Oberstdorf in the Allgäu region of the Alps, close to the Austrian border. From there it runs northwards, passing the towns of Sonthofen, Immenstadt, and Kempten...

  • Divided by numerous hollows (Muldentäler) and meltwater troughs

Rolling hills
  • Mostly loam and loess covered, ridges however loam-free, decalcified and therefore forested
  • Rapid alternation of open country (more grassland than arable land) and wooded areas (pine forests)

Landscape still not very dissected
Eastern Plain of the Lower Riß

Region between Neu-Ulm
Neu-Ulm
Neu-Ulm is a town in Bavaria, capital of the Neu-Ulm district. Neighbouring towns include Ulm, Senden, Pfaffenhofen an der Roth, Holzheim, Nersingen and Elchingen. The population is 51,110 .-History:...

, Senden and Laupheim

Comprises various old gravel terraces along the valleys of the Riß and Danube, formed during the Riß glaciation

Intensive arable land use

The south is less dissected by valleys than the north

Sub-divisions in both Baden-Württemberg and Bavaria

Geographical location Formation Relief Soil / Land use Remarks
Higher Plains of the Lower Iller Valley (south of Memmingen
Memmingen
Memmingen is a town in the Bavarian administrative region of Swabia in Germany. It is the central economic, educational and administrative centre in the Danube-Iller region. To the west the town is flanked by the Iller, the river that marks the Baden-Württemberg border...

) and Lower Plains of the Lower Iller Valley (north of Memmingen)

Iller Valley from Altusried
Altusried
Altusried is a municipality in the district of Oberallgäu in Bavaria in Germany....

 and Dietmannsried
Dietmannsried
Dietmannsried is a municipality in the district of Oberallgäu in Bavaria in Germany.-Sister cities: Carry-le-Rouet, Bouches-du-Rhône, France...

 to where it joins the Danube at Neu-Ulm
Neu-Ulm
Neu-Ulm is a town in Bavaria, capital of the Neu-Ulm district. Neighbouring towns include Ulm, Senden, Pfaffenhofen an der Roth, Holzheim, Nersingen and Elchingen. The population is 51,110 .-History:...


Broad valley filled by large quantities of gravel during and after the ice age
Ice age
An ice age or, more precisely, glacial age, is a generic geological period of long-term reduction in the temperature of the Earth's surface and atmosphere, resulting in the presence or expansion of continental ice sheets, polar ice sheets and alpine glaciers...

s

Flat

The north is used more for arable farming; the south more as grassland
  • In the southern part the Iller valley, which has cut down to the Tertiary bedrock, crosses the Young and Old Drift deposits
  • In places, continuous alluvial forest, in places still bog
Donauried

Large fen
Fen
A fen is a type of wetland fed by mineral-rich surface water or groundwater. Fens are characterised by their water chemistry, which is neutral or alkaline, with relatively high dissolved mineral levels but few other plant nutrients...

 plain by the Danube between Neu-Ulm and Donauwörth
Donauwörth
Donauwörth is a city in the German State of Bavaria , in the region of Swabia . It is said to have been founded by two fisherman where the Danube and Wörnitz rivers meet...


Würm Ice Age formed, partly boggy gravel plain

Flat

Used predominately for grassland and arable land, which has largely displaced the natural reed beds

Many gravel pit
Gravel pit
Gravel pit is the term for an open cast working for extraction of gravel. Gravel pits often lie in river valleys where the water table is high, so they may fill naturally with water to form ponds or lakes. Old, abandoned gravel pits are normally used either as nature reserves, or as amenity areas...

s

Sub-divisions in Bavaria

Geographical location Formation Relief Soil / Land use Remarks
Upper and Lower Iller-Lech Gravel Plateaus
  • Northern boundary: Donauried (Neu-Ulm
    Neu-Ulm
    Neu-Ulm is a town in Bavaria, capital of the Neu-Ulm district. Neighbouring towns include Ulm, Senden, Pfaffenhofen an der Roth, Holzheim, Nersingen and Elchingen. The population is 51,110 .-History:...

     – Nersingen
    Nersingen
    Nersingen is a municipality in the District of Neu-Ulm in Bavaria, Germany. The neighbours are Neu-Ulm, Elchingen, Bibertal and Pfaffenhofen an der Roth.-Geographic location:...

     – Günzburg
    Günzburg
    Günzburg is a Große Kreisstadt and capital of the district of Günzburg in Swabia, Bavaria. This district was constituted in 1972 by combining the city of Günzburg—which had not previously been assigned to a Kreis —with the district of Günzburg and the district of Krumbach.Günzburg lies...

     - Offingen
    Offingen
    Offingen is a municipality in the district of Günzburg in Bavaria in Germany....

    )
  • Western boundary: Iller or Günz Valley in places (Neu-Ulm – Illertissen
    Illertissen
    Illertissen is a town in the district of Neu-Ulm in Bavaria. It is situated approximately 20 km south from Ulm nearby the river Iller.-Coat of arms:...

     – Kellmünz an der Iller – Babenhausen
    Babenhausen, Bavaria
    Babenhausen is a municipality in the district of Unterallgäu in Bavaria, Germany....

     – Bad Grönenbach
    Bad Grönenbach
    Bad Grönenbach is a municipality in the district of Unterallgäu in Bavaria, Germany....

    )
  • Southern boundary: Dietmannsried – Obergünzburg
    Obergünzburg
    Obergünzburg is a municipality in the district of Ostallgäu in Bavaria in Germany....

     – Friesenried
    Friesenried
    Friesenried is a municipality in the district of Ostallgäu in Bavaria in Germany....

  • Eastern boundary: Mindel
    Mindel
    The Mindel is a river in Bavaria, southern Germany. The Mindel originates west of Kaufbeuren, in the Allgäu region, and flows generally north. It flows into the Danube in Gundremmingen, east of Günzburg. The towns Mindelheim, Burgau and Thannhausen lie along the Mindel.The Mindel gave its name to...

     between Offingen
    Offingen
    Offingen is a municipality in the district of Günzburg in Bavaria in Germany....

     and Thannhausen
    Thannhausen
    Thannhausen is a town in the district of Günzburg, in Bavaria, Germany. It is situated on the river Mindel, southeast of Günzburg, and west of Augsburg....

     – Markt Wald
    Markt Wald
    Markt Wald is a municipality in the district of Unterallgäu in Bavaria, Germany....

     – Bad Wörishofen
    Bad Wörishofen
    Bad Wörishofen is a spa town in the district Unterallgäu, Bavaria Germany known for the water-cure developed by Sebastian Kneipp , a Catholic priest, who lived there for 42 years...

     – Pforzen
    Pforzen
    Pforzen is a municipality in Ostallgäu, Bavaria.Near Pforzen is an extended Alemannic cemetery that was in use from the 5th up to the 8th century. A total of 442 graves were excavated in two campaigns in 1991/2 and 1996. Two items bearing runic inscriptions were recovered, the Pforzen buckle in...

  • Boundary roughly between the Upper and Lower Iller-Lech Gravel Plateaus: Babenhausen – Mindelheim
    Mindelheim
    Mindelheim is a town in the German Bundesland of Bavaria. The town is the capital of the Unterallgäu district. At various points in history it was the chief settlement of an eponymous state.- Geography :...

     – Markt Wald

Gently undulating glacial gravels divided into interfluvial ridges and gravel plateaus by river systems flowing from south to north

Gently undulating
  • Glacial gravels partly covered by loess
    Loess
    Loess is an aeolian sediment formed by the accumulation of wind-blown silt, typically in the 20–50 micrometre size range, twenty percent or less clay and the balance equal parts sand and silt that are loosely cemented by calcium carbonate...

  • Interfluvials: Covered by forest (especially pine forests)
  • River valleys: in the north more arable land, in the south more grassland
  • Gravel extraction in the Mindel and Günz Valley
    Günz
    The Günz is a river in Bavaria, Germany, right tributary of the Danube. It is formed near Lauben by the confluence of its two source rivers: the Östliche Günz and the Westliche Günz . It is approx. 90 km long . It flows generally north through the small towns Babenhausen, Deisenhausen,...

    s
  • Fens were largely drained
  • Stauden Plateau (Stauden) / Zusam Plateau and Stauffenberg Region (Reischenau and Holzwinkel)
  • Between Mindel and Flossach Valley
    Flossach
    Flossach is a river of Bavaria, Germany....

     in the west (Offingen, Thannhausen and Türkheim
    Türkheim
    Türkheim is a municipality in the district of Unterallgäu in Bavaria, Germany. The neighboring places of Türkheim are Ettringen, Berg, Rammingen, Irsingen, Wiedergeltingen and Amberg. The administrative collectivity of Türkheim administrate Türkheim and Irsingen....

    ) and the Lech and/or Wertach Valley in the east
  • Northern boundary: Offingen
    Offingen
    Offingen is a municipality in the district of Günzburg in Bavaria in Germany....

     – Holzheim – Wertingen
    Wertingen
    Wertingen is a municipality in the district of Dillingen in Bavaria, Germany. It is located 13 km east of Dillingen, and 28 km northwest of Augsburg.The German band Killerpilze comes from Wertingen....

     – Buttenwiesen
  • Boundary between the Stauden Plateau and Zusam Plateau and Stauffenberg region: Thannhausen – Fischach
    Fischach
    Fischach is a municipality in the district of Augsburg in Bavaria in Germany.-Geography:Fischach is situated in the "Naturpark Westliche Wälder" south of Augsburg...

     - Stadtbergen
    Stadtbergen
    Stadtbergen is a town in the district of Augsburg, in Bavaria, Germany. It is situated in the outskirts of Augsburg, 4 km west of Augsburg city centre. Stadtbergen was granted town privileges in May 2007....

  • Region is divided by the Schmutter
    Schmutter
    The Schmutter is a river in Bavaria, Germany, a right tributary of the Danube. Its source is 6 km southwest of Schwabmünchen, in the Swabia region of Bavaria. It flows north, and for several tens of kilometers it flows parallel to the Lech, at only a few km west of the Lech. It flows into the...

     and Zusam into gently undulating plateaus and flat interfluves
  • Numerous bogs on the valley floors of the partly asymmetrically-shaped valleys

  • Gently undulating
    • Relatively high proportion of forest and grassland (on the Stauden Plateau higher than in the more northern area of the Zusam Plateau and Stauffenberg region)
    • Pine forests dominated the woodland areas

    The Stauden Plateau, Zusam Plateau and Stauffenberg region together form the Augsburg-Westliche Wälder Nature Park
    Augsburg-Westliche Wälder Nature Park
    The Augsburg-Western Woods Nature Park is one of the two nature parks in Bavarian Swabia. The 1988 founded park has a size of 1175 km².The nature park is bordered by the rivers Danube, Wertach, Schmutter, Flossach and Mindel...

    Lower and Upper Lech-Wertach
    Wertach
    Wertach is a small town in the Oberallgäu district, southern Bavaria, Germany, in the German Alps. It is situated on the river Wertach, southeast of Kempten. The town was the childhood home of the writer W. G. Sebald....

     Plain
    • Northern boundary: near Bobingen
      Bobingen
      Bobingen is a town in Bavaria, Germany. It lies on the rivers Wertach and Singold, on the edge of the Augsburg-Westliche Wälder Nature Park, in Augsburg District, some 13 km south Augsburg itself.- History :...

    • Western boundary: Pforzen – Bad Wörishofen
      Bad Wörishofen
      Bad Wörishofen is a spa town in the district Unterallgäu, Bavaria Germany known for the water-cure developed by Sebastian Kneipp , a Catholic priest, who lived there for 42 years...

       – Rammingen
      Rammingen, Bavaria
      Rammingen is a municipality in the district of Unterallgäu in Bavaria, Germany....

       – Bobingen
    • Southern boundary: Pforzen – Denklingen
      Denklingen
      Denklingen is a municipality in the district of Landsberg in Bavaria in Germany....

    • Eastern boundary: Denklingen – Untermeitingen
      Untermeitingen
      Untermeitingen is a municipality in the district of Augsburg in Bavaria in Germany....

       – Bobingen
    • Boundary lies roughly between the Upper and Lower Lech-Wertach Plain: Türkheim – Schwabmünchen
      Schwabmünchen
      Schwabmünchen is a regional centre in Bavaria in the administrative region of Swabia south of Augsburg in the Augsburg district.-Location:Schwabmünchen lies about 20 km south of Augsburg between Lech and Wertach on the western edge of the Lechfeld, a gravel plain. Through the city flows the...

       - Kaufering
      Kaufering
      Kaufering is a municipality in the district of Landsberg in Bavaria in Germany.During World War II, a subcamp of Dachau concentration camp was located here.-External links:*...

  • Divided into lower terrace landscape by the Wertach and Gennach
    Gennach (river)
    Gennach is a river of Bavaria, Germany.-See also:*List of rivers of Bavaria...

     rivers
  • Meadows and lower terraces partly waterlogged

  • Flat
    • The Brennen are covered by pine forests
    • Intensive agricultural land use (in the south more grassland, in the north more arable land)
  • There are only a few remnants of the formerly widespread heath landscape
  • Together the Upper and the Lower Lech-Wertach Plains form the Lechfeld (Lech Plateau)
  • Sachsenried and Denklingen Rotwald

    Between Gennach and Lech, south of Denklingen
    • Dominated by the high terrace gravels of the Lech in the north
    • In the south dominated by Riß Ice Age morainic material, that covers the Tertiary bedrock

    Flat to hilly

    Pure forest landscape (mainly pine forests)
    Lech Valley

    Lech Valley from Schongau
    Schongau
    Schongau may refer to:*Schongau, Bavaria, a town in Germany*Schongau, Lucerne, a commune in Switzerland...

     to Augsburg and from Augsburg to where it joins the Danube
    • Extensive deposits of post-glacial gravel between Klosterlechfeld
      Klosterlechfeld
      Klosterlechfeld is a municipality in the district of Augsburg in Bavaria in Germany.-History:What is today the village of Klosterlechfeld developed in the 17th century around the pilgrimage church "Our Lady Help of Lechfield" and a Franciscan monastery....

       and the confluence with the Danube
    • North of Augsburg: broad U-shaped valley (Kastental) with gravel terraces of different ages; steps between the lower terraces and the loess-covered upper terraces 8 to 10 m high
    • Meadows and lower terraces waterlogged in places
  • Mostly used as grassland
  • On the upper terrace chiefly arable farming
  • The further north, the more arable farming predominates
  • Meadows and lower terraces in places covered by heaths with communities of nutrient-poor, chalk grasses and wasteland plants characteristic of the region
  • Almost continuous belt of alluvial forest along the river
  • Aindlingen Terrace
  • Western boundary: Lech Valley
  • Eastern boundary: parallel to state road 2035 (Augsburg-Pöttmes-Neuburg by the Danube)
  • Northern boundary: Danube Valley
  • High gravel plateau, rising towards the east
  • Divided by deep stream valley that are mostly asymmetrical

  • Hilly
    • Thick layer of loess
    • Valley floors mainly covered by grassland
    • Otherwise arable land predominates
    Landsberg Plateau
  • Western boundary: Mering
    Mering
    Mering is a municipality in the district Aichach-Friedberg, in Bavaria, Germany. It is located on the river Paar.First mentioned in record in 1021, Mering has a long history....

     – Landsberg am Lech
    Landsberg am Lech
    Landsberg am Lech is a town in southwest Bavaria, Germany, about 65 kilometers west of Munich and 35 kilometers south of Augsburg. It is the capital of the district of Landsberg am Lech....

     – Fuchs Valley
  • Eastern boundary: Mering
    Mering
    Mering is a municipality in the district Aichach-Friedberg, in Bavaria, Germany. It is located on the river Paar.First mentioned in record in 1021, Mering has a long history....

     – Geltendorf
    Geltendorf
    Geltendorf is a municipality in the district of Landsberg in Bavaria, Germany.-World heritage site:It is home to one or more prehistoric pile-dwelling settlements that are part of the Prehistoric Pile dwellings around the Alps UNESCO World Heritage Site....

     – Fuchs Valley

  • Landscape rising from north to south

    Gently undulating

    Arable land predominates

    Together with the Fürstenfeldbruck Hills forms one of the semi-circular Old Drift moraines in front of the adjoining Ammer-Loisach Hills

    Sources

      • Natural regions of Germany
        Natural regions of Germany
        This division of Germany into major natural regions takes account primarily of geomorphological, geological, hydrological and pedological criteria in order to divide the country into large, physical units with a common geographical basis...

      • Bavarian Alpine Foreland
        Bavarian Alpine Foreland
        The Bavarian Alpine Foreland refers to the region of plateau and rolling foothills south of the Danube and north of the Bavarian Alps. It has been shaped under the influence of the ice ages and has a rich variety of landscape forms...

      • Riedel

    • Bayernviewer at the Bavarian Measurement Office: http://www.geodaten.bayern.de/BayernViewer/index.cgi
    • Map of the BfN
      BFN
      BFN is a three-letter acronym that may refer to:* Internet slang for "Bye for now"* In computer science, the Backus Normal Form or Backus–Naur Form is a notation technique for context-free grammars...

      's Landscapes in Germany: http://www.bfn.de/geoinfo/landscapes/ and the information pages of the individual sub-divisions of the Iller-Lech Plateau
    The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
     
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