The territory of Estonia rose from the sea bed and its surface is relatively flat with an average altitude of 50 m above sea level. The soils of Estonia are generally heavy and stony. Since independence, the agricultural sector has been going through a process of privatization. Today, the agricultural sector is almost fully privatized. The sea has an impact on the climate throughout the country.
Winters are mild, springs are short, summers are warm and sunny, and autumns are long and windy.
The climatological conditions allow the cultivation of one crop per year during summer with irrigation possibly needed in May and June. In dry years, it is necessary to irrigate in July and August as well. However, more important than irrigation is drainage. It is estimated, that without drainage about two-thirds of the land for agricultural production would suffer from waterlogging. The artificial Lake Narva in the northeast was created in 1956, when the Narva hydropower plant started operating.