Lower Rhine Lowland

the southwestern part of the Central European Plain, in the basin of the lower course of the Rhine River in the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG). In the south the lowland merges with the foothills of the Rhenish Slate Mountains, and in the north it gradually gives way to the ancient glacial plains of the northern FRG. The lowland occupies a tectonic trough filled with loose deposits (primarily coarse gravel and sand) from the Rhine and its tributaries. The surface is flat, with low hills in places; elevations range from 50 to 180 m. Wheat, sugar beets, and barley are raised in the lowland, and there are many orchards. The principal cities are Bonn, Cologne, and Düsseldorf.