The whole of this soil is under cultivation and it is highly esteemed wherever found, being naturally a strong soil and susceptible of improvement.  The original forest growth consisted of oak, hickory, and walnut.  The land is easily improved, retentive of moisture and manure, and with careful management makes an excellent soil for general farming.  Owing to its tendency to bake, crops are liable to suffer during drought.

The land produces wheat, corn, grass, clover, apples, and pears.  It is a strong wheat soil, and yields from 15 to 25 bushels per acre and occasionally more.  Grass and clover hay yield at the rate of 1-1/2 to 2-1/2 tons per acre, while from 40 to 60 bushels of corn per acre are usually produced in good seasons.

All things considered, the Cecil clay is best adapted to the production of wheat and grass.  The more loamy phases are adapted to corn, but the type as a whole is a much better wheat land than corn land.  The soil is also well adapted to apples and pears.  Bluegrass grows well and makes fine pasturage, and stock raising and dairy farming are other industries to which the Cecil clay is well suited.  Care has to be used in the cultivation of this soil, for if worked when too wet it dries in large, hard clods that give trouble throughout the season and interfere with cultivation for a long time afterwards.

Cecil Silt Loam.

The surface soil of the Cecil silt loam consists of 12 inches of a light gray or white silt loam.  This material is underlain by a subsoil of yellow silt loam slightly heavier than the soil.  The type is locally termed “white land,” and is closely related to the Penn loam and the Iredell clay loam, these types surrounding and grading gradually into it.  In some areas the soil is quite free from stones, while in others from 10 to 30 per cent of the soil mass is composed of small rock fragments.

The type occupies several small areas in the Piedmont region, in the southeastern part of the County.  The largest of these areas lies about 2 miles east of Leesburg, and a considerable part of the type is adjacent to the Potomac River.  It occupies high, rolling, ridgy, or hilly lands, and has some rather steep slopes, though in general the surface is only gently sloping.

The drainage is good, but wherever the slopes are steep erosion proceeds rapidly, making gullies and washed-out places that hinder or entirely prevent cultivation.  The type is well watered by small streams which flow the year round.

Probably one-half of this type is cultivated.  The remainder is covered with a growth of scrub oak, pine, and some cedar.  The soil is thin and only fairly productive, and consequently is not greatly desired for agriculture.  It is very easy to work, but has to be cultivated carefully to avoid washing.  The crops raised are corn, wheat, grass, and some apples.  Corn yields from 25 to 35 bushels, wheat from 12 to 15 bushels, and clover and timothy hay from 1 to 2 tons per acre.  Small fruits and vegetables do well.