- 4 - the mean summer temperature is 22-23° C. Autumn is, on the average, 5° C warmer than spring. The mean summer temperature in the high-altitude parts is 11 to 12° C. Heavy precipitation is typical for these places. The average annual precipitation is 2541 mm for the maritime lowland, but in wet years may exceed 3500 mm; it exceeds 4000 mm in the mid-mountain area and the high-altitude parts receive 1700 mm. Relative humidity of the air is 75 to 85%. The soils of the maritime lowland are alluvial, sandy-pebbled and marshy. Red soils with a pH of 4.9 to 5.5, rather typical for maritime Adjaria, are present in the lower mountain lands; brown forest soils are found in the middle-mountain area; and mountain-meadow, sod-peaty and peaty soils are characteristic soils of the alpine areas. The following landscape belts may be delimited in maritime Adjaria: 1) Coastal lowland with an excessively damp, warm climate; with alluvial sand-pebbled and marshy soils that developed on young marine and alluvial sediments; and with a prevalence of cultivated woods and shrubs with "islands" of natural herb-shrub vegetation. 2) Foothills (to 600 m) with an excessively damp climate and red soils that developed on Paleogenic andesites, basalts and porphyrites; with cultivated plots interspersed with mixed Colchic forest. 3) Middle mountain belt (from 550 to 2100 m) with a damp temperature climate, brown soils that developed on Eocenic tufogenic and porphiritic rocks and with a mixed Colchic forest (chestnut and beech woods). 4) Sub-alpine (lower high-altitude) belt (from 2030 to 2350 m) with a damp cold climate, mountain-meadow soddy and sod-peaty soils developed on Paleogenic mountain rocks, and with a sub-alpine wood-shrubby and meadow vegetation. 5) Alpine (upper high-altitude) belt (from 2350 to 2600 m) with a damp cold climate, mountain-meadow soddy, sod-peaty soils, as well as rocks and screes, and with alpine (meadow, shrubby and chasmophytic) vegetation.