This area is predominantly in southwest Missouri and extends for a short distance into the northeast corner of Oklahoma and southeast Kansas. It makes up about 352.01 square miles. The towns of Springfield and Joplin, Missouri are in this MLRA.

    Land use: Farms and ranches make up most of this area. Forage and grain are grown for beef, dairy cattle, and other livestock. Raising of beef cattle is one of the major industries in the area. In addition, the poultry business has grown into a major industry. From the practice of keeping a few chickens on each farm, the poultry business has developed into a very specialized multimillion-dollar industry. Soybeans and winter wheat are the major cash crops. Loss of farmland is a concern in the area. Urbanization pressures are greatest in the Springfield and Joplin areas.
    Elevation and topography: Elevation ranges from 200 to 500m. These broad limestone ridges and remnants of plateaus have gently sloping to moderately sloping tops and strongly sloping to steep side slopes. The stream valleys are narrow to moderately wide and have relatively steep gradients. Local differences in elevation range from 1 to 10 meters.     Climate: Average annual precipitation-975 to 1,225 mm. Maximum precipitation is in spring and early in summer, and the minimum is in midsummer. Average annual temperature-13 to 16°C. Average freeze-free period-180 to 200 days.
    Water: In many years the moderate precipitation is adequate for crops and pastures, but summer droughts of sufficient severity and duration to reduce crop yields are common. On most farms shallow wells or springs supply water for domestic needs and for livestock, but deep wells are required for large quantities. Water from deep wells is of good quality but is hard. Small ponds on many individual farms provide some water for livestock, and a few large reservoirs are used for flood control and for recreation.
    Soils: Most of the soils are in the alfisol, ultisol, or mollisol orders. They formed in materials weathered from cherty limestone partly covered with a thin mantle of loess. Physical and chemical weathering has caused the cherty limestone to disintegrate into its least soluble components, which are chert and clay. The chert remains in the form of angular fragments or wavy horizon beds sandwiched between layers of clay. Down slope movement by gravitational creep has altered the upper cherty material on some soils. In general, the soils are moderately deep to very deep, moderately well drained to well drained, and medium to fine textured. The temperature regime is typically mesic and extends slightly into thermic. The moisture regime is udic and the mineralogy is mixed or siliceous. Soils on the nearly level to moderately sloping upland divides are frequently Paleudolls (Newtonia and Wanda series), Paleudalfs (Peridge series), Fragiudalfs (Creldon, Hoberg, Keeno, and Viraton series), Fragiaqualfs (Bado and Gerald series), Fragiudults (Captina, Needleye, Nixa, and Tonti series) and Hapludalfs (Barden and Bolivar series). Soils on the moderately sloping to steep upland side slopes are frequently Paleudalfs (Eldon, Goss, and Rueter series), and Paleudults (Clarksville series). Soils on the terraces and adjacent floodplains are frequently Hapludalfs (Razort, Secesh, and Waben series), Hapludolls (Cedargap and Huntington series), Paleudalfs (Britwater and Pembroke series) and Eutrudepts (Jamesfin series).
    Biological Resources: This area supports oak-hickory savanna vegetation. It is a transitional area between oak-hickory forests and bluestem prairies. Big bluestem, little bluestem, indiangrass, and switchgrass are the dominant grassland species. The forests and grasslands are interspersed. The oakhickory forests are more common on north slopes and on deeper soils and the grasslands on south slopes and on soils with low available moisture capacity.

Data Source:
U. S. Department of Agriculture, Natural Resources Conservation Service. 2002.
       Land Resource Regions and Major Land Resource Areas of the United States.
       Agriculture Handbook 296.U. S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D. C.

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