Hessian Ried

During the time of the Roman Empire the area was therefore avoided and the road, the Strata Montana, on the Bergstraße, built higher up along the edge of the Odenwald.

Because of the proximity of the large centres of population nearby (the Rhine-Main and Rhine-Neckar regions) vegetables and lettuce are grown widely.

Due to the low precipitation in the Hessian Ried, increasing amounts of artificial watering is needed.

This led to considerable disputes between the water companies, landowners, farmers, the forestry industry and conservation agencies.

Frequent flooding - especially from the Rhine and the Weschnitz – made the Hessian Ried an ideal habitat for these plants.