Upper Thracian Plain
The Upper Thracian Plain ( bulgar. Горнотракийска низина, Gornotrakijska nizina ) also called the Maritsa Plain , is located in southern Bulgaria and is the largest plain in the country. It is part of the northern part of the historical Thrace landscape . The name is derived from the ancient indigenous population - the Thracians . It is part of the Eurasian steppe belt , a large vegetation zone that extends from Burgenland to Mongolia .
The Upper Thracian Plain is bounded in the north by the Sredna Gora Mountains (a low promontory of the Balkan Mountains ) and the Balkan Mountains, in the south by the Rhodope Mountains . In the southeast it borders on the Sakar and the Strandschagebirge and in the east on the Black Sea .
During the Tertiary , the lowlands formed the bottom of a sea. Today the lowlands are 180 kilometers long, 50 kilometers wide and on average 168 meters high, their area is approximately 6000 km². Several rivers flow through it, the most important of which are the Mariza and Tundscha . Overall, the relief is flat with the exception of small hills near Plovdiv and Chirpan .
At about the height of the Tschirpan hills, the lowlands are divided into two parts, the eastern and western Upper Thracian lowlands. The overall climate is continental, with Mediterranean influences in the southeastern part of the plain.
Since the area has nutrient-rich soils and a flat relief, it is mainly used for agriculture. Are grown tomatoes , wheat , peppers , grapes , peaches , watermelons , tobacco , rice , cotton , etc.
Important cities are Burgas , Plovdiv , Stara Sagora , Tschirpan , Nowa Sagora , Yambol , Haskowo .