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81-581: The district dates back to the Oberamt Tübingen in the state of Württemberg . In 1811 the Oberamt Rottenburg was created, and both were converted into districts in 1934. In 1938 most of the district Rottenburg as well as a few municipalities from the district Herrenberg and Reutlingen were added to the district Tübingen. In 1974 it was enlarged again when some municipalities from the dissolved district Horb were added. The main river in

162-490: A cold air basin , which means that under cloudless skies the heavier, cold, night air which develops on the sparsely vegetated plateaus and hills, flows into the basin and concentrates there. Especially during the cold season, such "cold lakes" can contribute to the creation of fog while all around on the plateaus the sun shines. The orography of the Neckar valley facilitates such inversive weather conditions. The Neckar valley

243-443: A "natural" resistance to pests. The implementation of mechanical harvesting is often stimulated by changes in labor laws, labor shortages, and bureaucratic complications. It can be expensive to hire labor for short periods of time, which does not square well with the need to reduce production costs and harvest quickly, often at night. However, very small vineyards, incompatible widths between rows of grape vines and steep terrain hinder

324-424: A 115 km long chain which had been put into the river. Through that, the trip between Mannheim and Heilbronn was shortened to two to three days. On the horse drawn ships it had previously taken five to eight days. But often the water depth was not deep enough. The vernacular name for the chain boats was Neckaresel ("Neckar donkey"). The last chain boat navigation was still done 1933 – 1935 between Neckargerach and

405-492: A bewildering range of systems and techniques in recent years. Due to the often much more fertile New World growing conditions, attention has focussed heavily on managing the vine's more vigorous growth. Innovation in palissage (training of the vine, usually along a trellis, and often referred to as "canopy management") and pruning and thinning methods (which aim to optimize the Leaf Area/Fruit (LA/F) ratio relative to

486-486: A downfall to the Neckar navigation. On the one hand – because most parts of the lower Neckar area had fallen to Baden and the free imperial cities of Heilbronn and Esslingen to Württemberg – the many disputes and obstructions of the former small states did not hamper the trade anymore. But during the Continental System the navigation was restricted and ships and material were confiscated. The introduction of

567-651: A pastureland in the Oberrheinische Tiefebene in a tangle of meanders, slings, old waters and cut of arms between the Rhine in the west and the foot of the Odenwald in the east until it finally entered the Rhine only north of Darmstadt at Trebur ; roughly 50 km north of today's confluence in Mannheim. On large stretches you can still see it on aerial photos. In the 13th century, the confluence

648-518: A vineyard's microclimate ) have largely replaced more general, traditional concepts like "yield per unit area" in favor of "maximizing yield of desired quality". Many of these new techniques have since been adopted in place of traditional practice in the more progressive of the so-called "Old World" vineyards. Other recent practices include spraying water on vines to protect them from sub-zero temperatures, new grafting techniques, soil slotting, and mechanical harvesting. Such technique have made possible

729-914: Is a 362-kilometre-long (225 mi) river in Germany , mainly flowing through the southwestern state of Baden-Württemberg , with a short section through Hesse . The Neckar is a major right tributary of the Rhine . Rising in the Schwarzwald-Baar-Kreis near Schwenningen in the Schwenninger Moos conservation area at a height of 706 m (2,316 ft) above sea level, it passes through Rottweil , Rottenburg am Neckar , Kilchberg , Tübingen , Wernau , Nürtingen , Plochingen , Esslingen , Stuttgart , Ludwigsburg , Marbach , Heilbronn and Heidelberg , before discharging on average 145 m /s (5,100 cu ft/s) of water into

810-565: Is densely populated and heavily industrialised, with several well-known companies. Between Stuttgart and Lauffen, the Neckar cuts a scenic, meandering, and in many places steep-sided, valley into fossiliferous Triassic limestones and Pleistocene travertine . Along the Neckar's valley in the Odenwald hills many castles can be found, including Hornberg Castle and Guttenberg Castle  [ de ; lb ; ru ; uk ] in Haßmersheim ;

891-597: Is drained today. Afterward, the Neckar joins with the Eschach coming from the eastern slopes of the Black Forest which is much more water bearing. Its main tributary Glasbach, which originates at the Brogen, is hydrographically seen as the main river of the Neckar river system. With this junction above Rottweil the Neckar enters a narrow, wooded valley and for the next 80 km it bores its way towards north between

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972-412: Is known as viticulture . Vineyards are often characterised by their terroir , a French term loosely translating as "a sense of place" that refers to the specific geographical and geological characteristics of grapevine plantations, which may be imparted to the wine itself. The earliest evidence of wine production dates from between 6000 and 5000 BC. Wine making technology improved considerably with

1053-514: Is known for its wine cultivation climate and the cultivation of Trollinger , Lemberger , Kerner , Müller-Thurgau amongst other locally grown grape varieties. Wine cultivation has receded over the 20th century and cultivation of the "Württemberger Wein" is mostly restricted to the south-facing slopes with high radiation gain in the Neckar valley and its side valleys, as wine cultivation is labor-intensive and in Württemberg competitive only in

1134-466: The Anderssen Werft ("Anderssen shipyard"). It was put into service in 1925 and christened "Gebrüder Götz". The motor cargo ship was operated by the shipping company drove for the shipping company Ludwig und Jakob Götz, founded in 1920. One of the best known shipping companies on the Neckar, which was also involved in the upgrading of the river to a heavy shipping waterway. In 1946

1215-749: The Kocher with the highest average water drainage and the longest one, the Jagst . The Kocher tributary Lein is at its end not only longer than the Kocher, but also more water-abundant. Therefore, according to hydrographic convention, the Lein would have to be regarded as the main river of the Kocher water system, making it with then 201 kilometers the longest tributary of the Neckar. Named from source to mouth. According to LUBW-BRSWEB, LUBW-FG10, LUBW-GEZG and TK25. Drainage area mostly according to LUBW-GEZG, else measured on

1296-601: The MHPArena , the Hanns-Martin-Schleyer-Halle or the Cannstatter Wasen , the second-largest fair of Germany. The term Wasen gives a clue, that there used to be a floodplain on which the fair was held. Distinctive points in the industrial landscape of the Neckar valley are the high chimneys of the coal-fired power station Altbach/Deizisau and Heilbronn as well as the assembly halls of

1377-707: The South German Scarplands . For a long time it flowed on the high plains of the different Gäu Plateaus created through the hard chalks of the Muschelkalk . At Horb the river was redirected to the northeast due to the rift structure of the so-called Swabian Lineament , which lies roughly parallel to the escarpment of the Swabian Jura . Following that the Neckar cut into the Muschelkalk plateau between Rottweil and Rottenburg as well as

1458-486: The University of California, Davis , and California State University, Fresno , among others, have been conducting scientific experiments to improve viticulture and educate practitioners. The research includes developing improved grape varieties and investigating pest control. The International Grape Genome Program is a multi-national effort to discover a genetic means to improving quality, increasing yield and providing

1539-787: The Daimler-engine plant in Untertürkheim and the Audi plant in Neckarsulm. Along the Neckar's valley in the Odenwald hills many castles can be found, including Hornberg Castle and Guttenberg Castle in Haßmersheim ; the now-mothballed Obrigheim Nuclear Power Plant and the active Neckarwestheim Nuclear Power Plant are also located there. In contrast to the plains, the mostly steep slopes are often forested and in forestry use. The sun-exposed south-facing sites are frequently used for vineyards and are terraced with dry walls. There

1620-573: The Electoral Palatinate signed a trade agreement in order to start up the Neckar navigation between Mannheim and Cannstatt during a time of economical rise in the late 18th century. In 1782 the previous two and the free imperial city of Heilbronn agreed upon facilitations in the Neckar trade but which were only of administrative nature. The Neckar still remained blocked at the weir in Heilbronn. The Napoleonic times around 1800 brought

1701-587: The Mannheimer Stapels ("Mannheim stable") in 1808 meant that the merchants of Mannheim gained control over almost all Neckar trade. During the German Campaign of 1813 only small ships travelled on the Neckar, mainly military transports. The Congress of Vienna demanded the freedom of traffic on the Neckar and Rhine rivers in 1814/1815. The 550-meter-long Wilhelmskanal ("Wilhelms canal") was constructed in Heilbronn from 1819 to 1821. The reason

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1782-453: The Neckar have an additional role as water reservoir and are in many places used for drinking water production. The paths usually went over the heights and only crossed the valleys where there were fords over the Neckar. This changed with the onset of industrialisation in the 19th century. It brought fundamental conflicts regarding the land usage of the flat valley plain. Large even spaces became sought after for industrial sites. The Neckar

1863-418: The Neckar near Tübingen. The river's course provides a popular route for cyclists , especially during the summer months. The slopes of the Neckar are preferred areas for high-level residential areas because they allow wide, unobstructed views. The diverse usage of raw water and waterway , as well for the production of hydropower brought with it substantial interventions into the ecological structure of

1944-530: The Neckar river on October 26, 1899. The wood from the eastern Northern Black Forest was shipped through the Neckar and then Rhine up to Holland . Because of the developing seafaring the shipbuilding had a large demand for wood. The firewood from the Schurwald was combined to up to 260 Meter long rafts in Plochingen. The Neckar gained importance as a waterway in the middle of the 16th century due to

2025-640: The Neckar), the mouth of the Fils coming down from the east, from the Swabian Jura. Beginning from here the river has been expanded into a canalised waterway. It lies up to Stuttgart in a wide, urbanized meadow, which has been built over with industry and is cut through by transportation structures. Only around the Cannstatter valley bend for a short distance it is interspersed by large park areas. Here again

2106-519: The Neckar. Another trace of the former north western extent of the Danube river network is the Eschach running from north west to south east, hence towards the primal Danube. With the retraction of the escarpment, it was tapped by a Neckar tributary and redirected by about 90° to the east. Considering river history, it was never a headstream of the Neckar. Until 2000 years ago the Neckar flowed through

2187-582: The Neckar. In the Odenwald narrow ravines and gorges lead into the Neckar from both sides, as for example, the Wolfschlucht and the Margarethenschlucht. Due to the risk of flooding the valley plains remained unsettled for a long time, but the nutritious and, due to its good structure, very arable land was intensively used for agriculture, and to a large degree the valley plains are still used agriculturally today. The fertile soil allows

2268-699: The New World is significant. Europe's 1.6 million vineyards are an average of 0.2 km (49 acres) each, while the average Australian vineyard is 0.5 km (120 acres), providing considerable economies of scale . Exports to Europe from New World growers increased by 54% in the six years up to 2006. There have also been significant changes in the kinds of grapes that are grown. For example, in Chile, large areas of low-quality grapes have been replaced with such grapes as Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon . In Argentina, due to an economic down-turn, acreage of Malbec

2349-460: The Rhine at Mannheim , at 95 m (312 ft) above sea level, making the Neckar its 4th largest tributary, and the 10th largest river in Germany. Since 1968, the Neckar has been navigable for cargo ships via 27 locks for about 200 kilometres (120 mi) upstream from Mannheim to the river port of Plochingen, at the confluence with the Fils . From Plochingen to Stuttgart, the Neckar valley

2430-572: The Rhine river. The Rheinschiffahrtsakte ("Mannheim Act") from 1831 and in consequence of it the Neckarschiffahrtsordnung ("Neckar navigation regulations") from 1832 brought, through simplified regulations and tariffs a significant rise for the navigation. But because of its shallows and rapids the river was considered one of the most dangerous in Germany. In 1836 the Neckarschiffergilde ("Neckar shipping guild")

2511-411: The Swabian Jura ( Albtrauf ). Near Weitingen the valley is traversed by the 127 m high Neckar Viaduct of the A 81. At Rottenburg it enters the wider valley of Tübingen. After Tübingen the valley narrows again. From here onwards, the surrounding elevated grounds are considerably more densely populated. Middle reaches At Plochingen the Neckar turns sharply north west at the "Neckarknie" (knee of

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2592-692: The ancient Greeks but it was not until the end of the Roman Empire that cultivation techniques as we know them were common throughout Europe. In medieval Europe the Catholic Church was a staunch supporter of wine, which was necessary for the celebration of the Mass . During the lengthy instability of the Middle Ages, the monasteries maintained and developed viticultural practices, having the resources, security, stability and interest in improving

2673-470: The background map. Distances preferably according to the data sets of the LUBW-FG10, rarely measured on the background map. Namen preverably according to TK25. The Neckar touches, from the source to the mouth, the following districts, cities and municipalities: The primal Neckar started off as an escarpment riverlet due to the slow rise of the Black Forest and the connected slow erosive retraction of

2754-451: The barrage Kochendorf. The world's first motorboat made during the summer of 1886 by Gottlieb Daimler and Wilhelm Maybach was named "Neckar" when their Standuhr ( grandfather clock ) petrol engine was tested on the river near Bad Cannstatt. The motorized cargo navigation began on the Neckar in 1925. The first motor cargo ship on the river was ordered by the brothers Ludwig (1887–1955) and Jakob Götz (1890–1977) already in 1924 at

2835-481: The beginning upper German trade. Despite many interventions in the river course in order to improve navigation, the river which had a towpath , was because of dangerous rapids and shallows only navigable for smaller barges and this mostly only up to Heilbronn. Making the upper Neckar navigable was then pushed ahead by Christoph, Duke of Württemberg who got the necessary permission from Emperor Karl V. in 1553. The city of Heilbronn still insisted on its rights so that

2916-564: The best sites. Various excavations of harbor installations and findings lead to the conclusion that the Neckar navigation already existed during the Roman Age in the first century. Especially on the lower Neckar. Main purpose was probably the transportation of construction material for the Limes and provisions. Later the Neckar navigation was probably restarted by the Franks. Starting from 1100

2997-517: The city better from the more frequent flooding through overflow of the duct, the river received more space through a new, mostly open riverbed. This riverbed runs largely on the newly constructed horticultural show ground, which was used as the occasion for the remodeling. Headwaters Up to shortly before Rottweil the Neckar is only a small rivulet on the Baar plateau. In Deißlingen -Lauffen it has its only, 4 meters (13 ft) high, waterfall which

3078-475: The city, lastly in 1784 and 1789. The situation was then relaxed through the straightening of the river bed by means of for breakthroughs in combination with the lowering of the river bed as well as fortifications and dams. After consolidation of the situation in the 18th century, electoral palatinate market ships regularly travelled on the lower Neckar river. On the upper Neckar boats regularly travelled between Heilbronn and Cannstatt for several years around 1720;

3159-589: The continuous traffic on the river was for several centuries blocked. An annoyance for the neighbours. The permission of passage for raftsman therefore had to be determined contractually. In 1342 Württemberg, the Markgrafschaft Baden and the free imperial city signed an agreement for the opening of the Neckar for rafts between Besigheim and Heilbronn. A treaty from 1476 between the free imperial city Esslingen, Württemberg and Austria fixed free rafting trade as well. The last raft went through Tübingen down

3240-578: The cultivation area of the Württemberg wine region . The vineyards at the lower reaches from Heinsheim to Heidelberg are part of the Baden wine region . Until the end of the 19th century, vineyard cultivation was more extensive in the Neckar valley including unfavorable sites. Today these have been abandoned and gone fallow, reclaimed by wildlife. One example is the southern slopes of the Spitzberg above

3321-492: The cultivation of lucrative specialty crops like vegetables or hops , for example, between Rottenburg and Tübingen. Gravel pit quarrying in the valley plains takes away agricultural land, but created large lakes, nowadays used for recreational purposes. These borrow pits also became habitat for birds, amphibians and aquatic creatures. Such large borrow pits can be found for example near Kirchentellinsfurt and between Freiberg am Neckar and Pleidelsheim . The gravel bodies of

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3402-411: The development of "T" budding now permits the grafting of a different grape variety onto existing rootstock in the vineyard, making it possible to switch varieties within a two-year period. Local legislation often dictates which varieties are selected, how they are grown, whether vineyards can be irrigated and exactly when grapes can be harvested, all of which in serves to reinforce tradition. Changes in

3483-428: The development of wine industries in New World countries such as Canada. Today there is increasing interest in developing organic , ecologically sensitive and sustainable vineyards. Biodynamic wine has become increasingly popular in viticulture. The use of drip irrigation in recent years has expanded vineyards into areas which were previously unplantable. For well over half a century, New York's Cornell University ,

3564-718: The district is the Neckar . The landscapes covered by the district are called Oberer Gäu and Schönbuch . The coat of arms show the banner (gonfalon) of the Counts of Tübingen. In contrast to the coat of arms of the city Tübingen, it is depicted on a spear. The red-and-white colors are chosen to represent the County Hohenberg, which belonged to Austria . 48°31′N 9°03′E  /  48.52°N 9.05°E  / 48.52; 9.05 Neckar The Neckar ( German pronunciation: [ˈnɛkaʁ] )

3645-585: The employment of machine harvesting even more than the resistance of traditional views which reject such harvesting. Numbers of New World vineyard plantings have been increasing almost as fast as European vineyards are being uprooted. Between 1990 and 2003, the number of U.S. vineyards increased from 1,180 to 3,860 km or 292,000 to 954,000 acres, while Australian vineyard numbers more than doubled from 590 to 1,440 km (146,000 to 356,000 acres) and Chilean vineyards grew from 654 to 1,679 km (161,500 to 415,000 acres). The size of individual vineyards in

3726-499: The expansion of the navigation to the Württembergian Plochingen further up the river failed due to the free imperial city of Esslingen . While the electoral palatinate shipping on the lower Neckar was quite successful, the shipping on the upper Neckar was soon stopped again as the river was not suitably enough expanded for a navigation and moreover no funding was available for the further upgrading. Württemberg and

3807-569: The first transportation order for coal after the Second World War on the Neckar was awarded and shipped by Johann Friedrich Boßler with his motor cargo ship Elisabeth. Vineyard A vineyard ( / ˈ v ɪ n j ər d / VIN -yərd , UK also / ˈ v ɪ n j ɑːr d / VIN -yard ) is a plantation of grape-bearing vines, grown mainly for winemaking, but also raisins, table grapes, and non-alcoholic grape juice. The science, practice and study of vineyard production

3888-531: The fruit, rather than foliage. The terroir philosophy is predominantly French in origin, the flavour and character of the place defining the individuality and the special attributes of wines and combined with hundreds of years of the finest wine making traditions, terroir gives wines their distinctive taste and signature. However, wildfires in California and Australia have also influenced the character of vineyard plantations and grapes in those areas. A vignette

3969-427: The hard Muschelkalk. The best known cut-off meander spur is the one at Lauffen ; it cut through in historical times and created a waterfall (historic: Laufen ). At the cutbanks one can find rocks, formed by the limestone of the upper Muschelkalk. For example, the rock gardens at Hessigheim . They lie on the marls and clays of the middle Muschelkalks and can sag in whole stone packages, so-called Schollen , down towards

4050-515: The heavy barges on the towpath upriver. The reason was that the steam ships were not yet strong enough herefore. The competition of rail transport made steam ships as well as towing barges gradually uneconomic in the second half of the 19th century. Rafting on the other hand kept its importance, but adapted to the age of the railroad. Because trunks from the Black forest did more and more go by train to Heilbronn and only from there continued their trip on

4131-527: The last of his distinctive knees at Eberbach it turns west, enters at Hirschhorn for a short distance Hessian territory and is then up to Neckarsteinach on long parts the border between Baden-Württemberg and Hessen. At Neckargemünd the Elsenz enters from the left, its lower reaches using a part of the Neckars former Maurer river loop which extended far south. At the city of Heidelberg , which borders in

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4212-794: The law can also change which grapes are planted. For example, during Prohibition in the U.S. (1920–1933), vineyards in California expanded sevenfold to meet the increasing demand for home brewing. However, they were largely planted in varieties with tough skins that could be transported across the country to home wine-makers and the resulting wine was of a low quality. According to the International Organisation of Vine and Wine , in April 2015, China (799,000 hectares or 1,970,000 acres) overtook France (792,000 hectares or 1,960,000 acres) in terms of land devoted to vineyards, in second place behind Spain (1,000,200 hectares or 2,472,000 acres),

4293-415: The local red wine grapes Trollinger , Schwarzriesling and Lemberger are cultivated, which are also traditionally mostly drunk in Württemberg . Especially the middle Neckar around Besigheim and Lauffen is characterized by in parts extremely steep vineyards, which can be cultivated only by hand. The vine terrasses at the Neckar together with the drainage area of the tributaries deliver the largest part of

4374-643: The name in German is masculine (der Neckar). Drainage area The headwater region of the Neckar lies in the Schwenninger Moos between Schwenningen and Bad Dürrheim . The traditionally marked spring of the river lies in the city park Möglingshöhe in Schwenningen. Prior to the Landesgartenschau Villingen-Schwenningen 2010, the Neckar flowed in the city center of Schwenningen mostly underground. In order to protect

4455-654: The north the Odenwald and at the south the Königstuhl (Odenwald) , the Neckarvalley is cut in the deepest by over 400m through mountains. After passing the Heidelberger historic city, the river enters the wide Upper Rhine Plain and after further about 25 kilometers in Mannheim roughly at its middle it enters the Rhine from the right. The largest tributaries of the Neckar are the Enz with the largest drainage area,

4536-401: The now-mothballed Obrigheim Nuclear Power Plant and the active Neckarwestheim Nuclear Power Plant are also located there. Traditionally the fertile plains have been intensively used for agriculture and its steep valley sides as vineyards . The name Neckar may be derived from Nicarus and Neccarus from Celtic Nikros , meaning wild water or wild fellow . The grammatical gender of

4617-440: The other two of its large tributaries: First its water-richest tributary, the Kocher and then the officially longest, the Jagst , in total roughly doubling its discharge. Lower reaches Between Bad Wimpfen with its Stauferpfalz and Mosbach , the Neckar enters the Odenwald , where, again in a gorge-like valley, high, elevated, forested slopes line its riverside and especially on the right side, deeply cut valleys enter. At

4698-400: The primal lone to the primal Danube . Another influence on this river area was the Schurwald , a dissected cuesta of the filder rift, working as a river guideline. Today's lower reaches used to be those of the primal Enz . Until, through the erosive retraction of a tributary of the primal Enz near Besigheim, the Neckar river network was tapped. That is how the Enz became a tributary of

4779-597: The quality of their vines. They owned and tended the best vineyards in Europe, and vinum theologium was considered superior to all others. European vineyards were planted with a wide variety of the Vitis vinifera grape. In the late 19th century, the entire species was nearly destroyed in an event known as the Great French Wine Blight , in which the grape pest phylloxera , an insect related to aphids ,

4860-655: The ranges of the Black Forest and the Swabian Jura . It has created two cut-off meander spurs at the Neckarburg which is spanned by the Neckarburgbrücke. Further down the river lies high above the river the old town of Oberndorf on a Calcareous sinter terrace , which fills one of the bowl-like side valleys. At Horb it turns from the Gäu Plateau towards north east and then follows the western side of

4941-425: The resulting wine may be virtually undetectable. Vineyards are often located on hillsides and planted in soil that is of only marginal value to other plants. A common saying is that "the worse the soil, the better the wine." Planting on hillsides, especially those facing north (in the southern hemisphere) or south (in the northern hemisphere), is most often in an attempt to maximize the amount of sunlight that falls on

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5022-652: The right north of Marbach the Murr . After passing the Hessigheimer Felsengärten the water-rich Enz enters from the left at Besigheim . The former rapid at the Lauffener avulsion of the meander is today under water due to the canalization. In the Lowlands around Heilbronn the Neckar runs again through a wide meadow an open landscape. At Bad Friedrichshall it takes up within only two kilometers

5103-487: The river was blocked at Heilbronn which meant that the upper Neckar and therefore Württemberg remained cut off from the navigation coming from the Rhine. All shipped goods were subject to Heilbronner staple right . In the late 16th century, Duke of Württemberg, Frederick I had plans for the navigation passage but discarded those in 1598 and instead planned to construct a württembergian trade port in Kochendorf . – which

5184-417: The river. Multiple initiatives are advocated for the land restoration the Neckar, the ecological enhancement of the river network, the improvement of the water quality , improved flood control and the creation of attractive local recreational areas alongside the river. Only recently within the frame of the nationwide campaign lively rivers and the initiative Lebendiger Neckar (German: lively Neckar), it

5265-475: The strong backfilling with Aue clay since the start of settlement in the Neolithic and the accompanying deforestation and soil erosion . In the area of the narrows the meander and cut-off meander spurs stand out. The meanders were formed through the primal Neckar, which sluggishly flowed through the almost even Muschelkalk plateau, forming the basic structures during the deepening phases and cutting into

5346-479: The usage of the Neckar as a waterway with line boats and rafts has been attested. The river was already blocked by weirs in the surroundings of several cities during the High Middle Ages. In Heilbronn a harbour was mentioned for the first time in 1146. The Neckar privilege granted by Holy Roman Emperor Louis IV in 1333 allowed the free imperial city the construction of a weir. After its construction,

5427-492: The valley became the only possibility for modern transportation infrastructure. Construction of railway lines and avenues in the valley plains changed the Neckar valley from a cultural to an industrial landscape. One example is the densely populated and industrialised Neckar valley between Plochingen and Bad Cannstatt , which harbors large companies such as Daimler AG (the maker of Mercedes Benz cars) and Mahle GmbH and recreational facilities with large area consumption like

5508-437: The valley sides show limestone-sinter. Between Stuttgart and Lauffen the Neckar cuts a scenic, meandering, and in many places steep-sided, valley into fossiliferous Triassic limestones and Pleistocene travertine . After Stuttgart it turns again towards the general northern direction. In a winding and narrow valley section through the Ludwigsburg (district) the Rems enters from the right at Remseck and then again from

5589-430: The vineyard. For this reason, some of the best wines come from vineyards planted on quite steep hills, conditions which would make most other agricultural products uneconomic. The stereotypical vineyard site for wine grapes (in the Northern hemisphere) is a hillside in a dry climate with a southern exposure, good drainage to reduce unnecessary water uptake, and balanced pruning to force the vine to put more of its energy into

5670-449: The water, a new rafting harbour was constructed in Heilbronn in 1875. Above Esslingen the rafting was only of little importance. The last raft passed the city on 28. Oktober 1899. A new recovery for the Neckar navigation came with the chain boat navigation begun in 1878. Despite the construction of a railroad line along the Neckar. Between Mannheim and Heilbronn steam towboats with attached barges were now able to pull themselves upriver on

5751-407: The world's largest producer. Terroir refers to the combination of natural factors associated with any particular vineyard. These factors include things such as soil, underlying rock, altitude, slope of hill or terrain, orientation toward the sun, and microclimate (typical rain, winds, humidity, temperature variations, etc.). No two vineyards have exactly the same terroir, although any difference in

5832-479: The younger Keuper and Jura layers in the northeast, and created narrow water gaps in the area of the morphologically hard chalks and sandstones. The river deepening was also caused by the further rise of the Black Forest as well as the retracting erosion of the attacking younger Neckar route. This younger Neckar route tapped the primal Neckar system at Plochingen (hence the Neckarknie ), which flowed through

5913-445: Was accidentally introduced to Europe from North America. Native American grapevines include varieties such as Vitis labrusca , which are resistant to the insect. Vitis vinifera varieties were saved by being grafted onto the rootstock of Native American varieties, although there is still no remedy for phylloxera , which remains a danger to any vineyard not planted with grafted rootstock. The quest for vineyard efficiency has produced

5994-522: Was also the reason for the relocation of the Neckar. After the old Neckar was cut off in early 1869, it followed the path of the new Neckar breakthrough, which was finished by 1880. Narrow and widening valleys alternate along the Neckar's course. The narrows are mostly deepenings into the Muschelkalk plateau and the Buntsandstein below. Widenings developed in the area of morphologically soft clay and marl. Wide valley meadows also developed through

6075-486: Was as unsuccessful as his successors plans to build one in Untereisesheim . During the times of need in the 17th century, the navigation was insignificant. Immediately above Mannheim interventions were necessary due to regular floods. After 1622, smaller corrections were made at the back then-existing Neckar loops between Mannheims Feudenheim and today's Friedrich-Ebert-Bridge. Floods still occurred and threatened

6156-513: Was begun to free it from its partly-existing concrete corset. The river has in parts been redeveloped as a local recreational area and habitat for animals and plants. It still remains a symbol of endangered nature with the highest power plant density in Germany. At an oxygen content of below 4 mg/L power plant owners have to run specially designed turbines to inject air into the water. As of 2003, no mass die-off of fish due to lack of oxygen had occurred for 20 years. The Neckar valley functions as

6237-526: Was dissolved, which had since 1810 tried to gain a monopoly on the Neckar trade. With the ratification of the Neckarschiffahrtsordnung in 1842 all Guilds were dissolved and thereby economic freedom created. From 1841/42 onwards the Heilbronn-based Neckar-Dampfschifffahrt introduced a regular passenger and general cargo transport from Heilbronn to Mannheim. Despite the usage of modern steam ships, horses still pulled

6318-416: Was mostly straightened in order to prevent flooding and to gain areas for industrial buildings. The river itself was expanded over the course of centuries. With the development into a heavy shipping lane in the early 20th century, the last freely flowing parts between Plochingen and the mouth disappeared and the whole river in this part nowadays is characterized by dam areas. In the strongly textured Neckar area

6399-486: Was significantly reduced in the 1980s, but in the 1990s, during the quality revolution incited by Malbec Pioneer Nicolás Catena Zapata, growers started planting more Malbec, most notably in higher altitudes where cooler temperatures and more intense sunlight yield more concentrated yet smoother and more complex malbecs. Grape changes are often in response to changing consumer demand but sometimes result from vine pull schemes designed to promote vineyard change. Alternatively,

6480-466: Was south of Mannheim. A great flood changed the course of the Neckar in around 1275. Since then it enters the Rhine north of the city. The last change here took place in connection with the straightening of the Rhine by the Friesenheimer breakthrough west of today's Friesenheimer Island. Previously the Neckar entered the Rhine in the area of today's industrial port of Mannheim . Its new riverbed

6561-508: Was the bypassing of the entire weir area and many mills. After further river construction measures, the Neckar became navigable all the way between the Rhine and Cannstatt . A lock gate at the upper end of the canal could turn it during floods into a port of refuge which was, already in 1829, expanded into a port of transshipment. In 1827 the Mannheimer Stapel was lifted through which the Neckar navigators gained back free access to

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