Tobacco, especially burley, is an important cash crop. Most of the soils, southward from about the Kentucky-Tennessee border, are Udults that have a thermic temperature regime, an udic moisture regime, and siliceous and kaolinitic mineralogy. Udalfs and Udults of mesic temperature regime, udic moisture regime, and mixed mineralogy are dominant in Kentucky and in Indiana. The soils generally are very deep to cherty limestone and strongly acid and highly leached and have a subsoil rich in clay. An extensive acreage in Kentucky is in the Daniel Boone National Forest, and some large tracts are owned by coal and timber companies.
Urbanization is minor.
About 80 percent of the area is forests of mostly mixed hardwoods. Lumber is an important product. About 8 percent of the area is cropland. Corn, hay, and tobacco are the major crops. About 8 percent is pasture used mostly for beef cattle.