Tucumán

Andean province in northwest Argentina; area 22,524 sq km/8,697 sq mi; population (1996) 1,142,105. The provincial capital is San Miguel de Tucumán. Tucumán is the smallest province in area, but the most densely populated in Argentina. The most important crop is sugar cane, upon which a number of the province's industries depend, for example sugar refining, and the production of industrial alcohol. The province is the second-largest producer of rice in the country.

Other crops extensively cultivated are maize, peanuts, vines, and various other fruits; cattle ranching is also important. There is some mining of salt and gypsum.

Physical The western part of Tucumán is mountainous and forested, but there are fertile plains in the east. The Sierra de Aconquija (rising to over 5,100 m/16,732 ft) runs north–south through the west of the province. The mountains here produce a very favourable climate for agriculture in the northwest region: there is sufficient rainfall (about 1000 mm), the air is humid, there are no frosts, and streams and rivers running down from the mountains irrigate the soil. The region is drained by the River Sali (Dulce) and the River Santa María (Cajón), which are dammed for hydroelectric power and for irrigation.