Tennessee (state)

E

Plant Life

In the 18th century most of Tennessee was covered by great hardwood forests. Today forests cover 55 percent of the state’s land area. Private landowners control most of the forest land.

Many species of oaks and hickories are found throughout Tennessee. Among the other forest trees of Tennessee are the tulip poplar, or tulip tree, which is the state tree, and the red maple, American sycamore, American elm, shortleaf pine, table-mountain pine, pitch pine, and white pine. Flowering trees and shrubs include the flame azalea, mountain laurel, vaccinium, and species of dogwoods and rhododendrons. Common wild flowers include the creeping phlox, fumitory, Dutchman’s-breeches, and Oswego tea.

The upland forests of eastern Tennessee are dominated by red spruces and Fraser firs. Forests of northern hardwoods also occur in the mountains and include such trees as the yellow birch, sugar maple, white ash, beech, and black cherry. Among the wild flowers in the high mountain forests of Tennessee are the wood sorrel, trout-lily, spring beauty, and phacelia. There are more varieties of plant life in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park than in all of Europe.

In the Nashville Basin there are open stands of red cedars together with post oaks, chinquapin oaks, shagbark hickories, winged elms, redbuds, and southern buckthorns. In the red cedar woods the spring wild flowers include the sandwort, sedum, phlox, verbena, and evening primrose. The iris, which is the state flower, is cultivated extensively in central Tennessee.

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The bald cypress is common in the low swampy bottomlands of western Tennessee, along with black willows, cottonwoods, silver maples, sweet gums, and river birches. Some oaks and hickories are found on higher ground.

F

Animal Life

The bison, wolves, and elk (wapiti) that once roamed Tennessee have now disappeared from the state, and the only large mammals remaining are the black bear, the white-tailed deer, and the cougar. Red wolves were recently reintroduced into the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Among the small mammals now found are the red fox, beaver, mink, raccoon, striped skunk, long-tailed weasel, and opossum. Other small mammals also found in Tennessee include the muskrat, woodchuck, cottontail, swamp rabbit, gray fox, and southern flying squirrel.

Western Tennessee lies in the Mississippi Flyway, and each spring and fall thousands of migratory birds pass through the state. Thousands of ducks spend the winter in the state. Among the other game birds of Tennessee are the bobwhite, ruffed grouse, mourning dove, and turkey.

The year-round bird residents of Tennessee include the robin, eastern bluebird, cardinal, meadowlark, Carolina chickadee, and the mockingbird, the state bird. Also found are the yellow-shafted flicker, whippoorwill, Carolina wren, sparrow hawk, and several species of woodpeckers. The summer bird residents include the brown thrasher, scarlet tanager, indigo bunting, rose-breasted grosbeak, and species of warblers, sparrows, thrushes, flycatchers, hawks, and swallows.

There are many varieties of turtles, lizards, and snakes in Tennessee. The three poisonous snakes found there are the copperhead, cottonmouth, and timber rattlesnake. Among the nonpoisonous snakes are the black rat snake, black racer, garter snake, king snake, water snake, and pine snake. Fish found in the waters of Tennessee include black bass, carp, perch, catfish, and crappie.

G

Conservation

Among federal agencies the TVA has played a very important role in conservation efforts, because the greater part of the state lies within the Tennessee river basin. The principal state agency responsible for conservation is the Tennessee department of conservation. Soil erosion, floods, and mismanagement of forests are the chief conservation problems. Erosion is widespread, because land too steep for cultivation has been plowed for centuries. Precious top soil has not only been washed away by the rivers but has silted up reservoirs, thereby creating further problems. Many critically eroded areas have been reforested with seedling trees, and other conservation techniques, such as contour plowing, have been introduced. The dams, reservoirs, and other control works on the Tennessee and Cumberland rivers and their tributaries help to prevent flooding.

The Tennessee pollution control board seeks to prevent pollution of the water and air. The Surface Mining Act of 1972 placed surface mining operations under strict control.

In 2006 the state had 13 hazardous waste sites on a national priority list for cleanup due to their severity or proximity to people. Some progress was being made in efforts to reduce pollution; in the period 1995–2000 the amount of toxic chemicals discharged into the environment was reduced by 19 percent. Still, this reduction was less than that recorded by many other states.

III

Economic Activities

Tennessee was predominantly agricultural as late as 1940. During the second half of the 20th century the growth of manufacturing has been rapid, encouraged by low-cost power provided by the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), improved transportation facilities, and nearby markets. In 1996 manufacturing was the leading contributor to the state gross product, followed by services and trade.

Tennessee had a work force of 2,990,000 in 2006. The largest share of those employed, 33 percent, worked in service industries such as those catering to tourists. Another 19 percent were employed in wholesale or retail trade; 17 percent in manufacturing; 15 percent in federal, state, or local government, including those serving in the military; 28 percent in finance, insurance, or real estate; 5 percent in construction; 7 percent in transportation or public utilities; 3 percent in farming (including agricultural services) or forestry; and a fraction of 1 percent in mining. In 2005, 5 percent of Tennessee’s workers were unionized.

A

Agriculture

A

1

Patterns of Farming

The state’s largest farms are in western Tennessee, where cotton has historically been the leading crop. Cotton is supplemented, or in some sections supplanted, by corn, soybeans, vegetables, strawberries, and tobacco. Eastward in the Nashville Basin, livestock predominate. Cattle, hogs, sheep, horses, and poultry are raised there. On some farms, dairying is the chief source of income. Corn, hay, and other crops are grown mainly to feed the livestock, not for cash. However, in the Nashville Basin and on the Highland Rim, tobacco is an important crop.

Farm yields are generally lower in the Cumberland Plateau, where poor eroded soils, steep slopes, and lack of machinery and transportation have hampered agricultural development. Livestock raising (including dairying), and the cultivation of fruit, vegetables, and tobacco are carried on. Conditions improve in the Ridge and Valley province to the east, where farmers engage in tobacco cultivation and livestock raising.

There were 84,000 farms in Tennessee in 2005. Of those, only 26 percent had annual sales of more than $10,000. Many of the remainder were part-time operations whose farmers held other jobs. Farmland covered 4.7 million hectares (11.6 million acres), or 46 percent of the state’s land surface. At 56 hectares (138 acres), the average farm was relatively small.

Crops occupy 59 percent of the farmland, and they account for 49 percent of the income generated on farms. The sales of livestock and animal products generate the remainder of farm income.

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