Artists often depict nature and Jacob Lawrence, an African American, is no exception. Come take a look at his Migration Series that he painted during the first half of the early twentieth century. His art reflects the migration of African Americans from the South to the North during that same period.
One of my favorite paintings depicts cotton and the boll weevil, an insect that decimated cotton in the South:
Panel no. 9: They left because the boll weevil had ravaged the cotton crop, 1940-1941
The boll weevil was one of many reasons, racism and violence being at the top of the list, why African Americans moved away from the South to find opportunities in the North.
I love all of Lawrence’s work!
African Americans and the Environment 
I studied Art History at Berkeley and there were simply too few opportunities to learn about African American artists, especially those who painted our environment. Thanks for posting — also check out the Highwaymen, if you have not already…http://bit.ly/6c9Ep6
feel free to re-post on highwaymen at rooted in the earth at fb.