Karshi Steppe

Karshi Steppe 

a rolling plain in the Uzbek SSR. It slopes from an elevation of 500 m to 200 m from east to west, from the hilly foothills of the Zeravshan and Gissar ranges to the Sundukli sands. Part of the Karshi Steppe is irrigated by the Kashkadar’ia River. The Karshi Main Canal is under construction (1972). The climate is arid, with annual precipitation of 200–400 mm. The Karshi Steppe is covered with desert wormwood, thistle, and ephemeral vegetation. Large areas of the steppe are planted with grain crops and cotton. The city of Karshi is located on the eastern part of the plain, in the southern foothills of the Kungurtau elevation. The five-year plan for the development of the national economy of the USSR for 1971–75 provides for continuing work on the development of a large new cotton-growing region on the Karshi Steppe.