Geest ( German pronunciation: [ɡeːst] , Dutch : geestgrond [ˈɣeːstxrɔnt] , Danish : gest [ˈke̝ˀst] ) is a type of landform , slightly raised above the surrounding countryside, that occurs on the plains of Northern Germany , the Northern Netherlands and Denmark . It is a landscape of sandy and gravelly soils formed as a glacial outwash plain and now usually mantled by a heathland vegetation on the glacial deposits left behind after the last ice age during the Pleistocene epoch.
7-700: The Burgdorf-Peine Geest (German: Burgdorf-Peiner Geest ) is a geest landscape, dominated by end and ground moraines , between Hanover and Brunswick in North Germany, with an area of about 550 square kilometres (210 sq mi). Its natural borders are the Aller depression in the north, the Hildesheim Börde and, in places, the Mittelland Canal in the south the Oker valley in
14-576: Is a substantivisation of the Low German adjective güst , which means "dry and infertile". It is an Old Drift landscape, characterised by the sandy depositions of the Ice Age . In the depressions between the raised flats are wet meadows and, where drainage is poor, bogs . Geest lands are made up of moraines and sandurs . They are almost always next to flat marshlands , the geest being higher and better protected against flood but, compared to
21-551: Is the Hämeler Forest near Hämelerwald . The landscape is dominated by arable fields, in which rye , oats and potatoes produce good returns. Asparagus is also widely grown on the dry, sandy soils, Burgdorf Asparagus ( Burgdorfer Spargel ) being particularly well known in Germany as a whole. The grazing of cattle is also a common mode of farming due to the poor soils. Near Hänigsen a loamy ground moraine rises close to
28-811: The B 188 federal road . This area, also called the Burgdorf-Peine Geest (or Sand ) Plateaus , belongs to the Lower Saxon geest countryside, that covers large parts of the North German Plain . The surface of the Burgdorf-Peine Geest is gently rolling. It is divided into depressions like the Fuhse (running from north to south) and valleys with fen country. In many areas the original forests have been cleared to make way for agriculture. One remaining large area of woodland
35-473: The east and the Hanoverian Moor Geest in the west. Today it is bordered by the cities of Hanover and Brunswick and the towns of Burgdorf , Uetze , Vechelde , Peine and Lehrte . The whole geest region with its rural settlements has a distinctly rural character, with the exception of the town of Peine. The area is crossed from east to west by the Mittelland Canal , the A 2 motorway and
42-475: The marsh, with poor soil for agriculture. Where the geest borders the sea directly, sand cliffs exist. The oldest settlements in Northern Germany and Denmark lie on geest, since it provided better protection against storm floods . Many important towns are on the boundary between geest and marshland where people could enjoy the flood-protection of the geest but still use the much more fertile soil in
49-486: The surface which improves the soil quality . The sandy parts of the geest are mainly covered with pine woods exploited by the forestry industry. Deciduous woods occur here and there in the shape of English oak and birch woods. This Hanover Region location article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . 52°22′48″N 10°03′52″E / 52.3800°N 10.0644°E / 52.3800; 10.0644 Geest (topography) The term geest
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