CECIL SANDY LOAM 



This soil, locally called "gray land," covers 67,648 acres, or about one- 

 fifth, of the county, being second in extent to the Cecil clay loam. The 

 surface soil consists of a light gray, yellowish gray to light brown 

 medium sandy loam, ranging in depth from 6 to 15 inches. The subsoil 

 is a red stiff clay usually extending to a depth of several feet. In local 

 spots the surface soil is deeper, lighter in texture, and of more open and 

 porous character; especially is this true of a part of the type around 

 Juneau and south of E'ewell. Included with the sandy loam are spots 

 of clay loam and fine sandy loam of insufiicient size to be represented 

 on soil map. Many of them are due to surface washing. A few quartz 

 fragments and occasionally granitic boulders are seen on the surface, 

 while a few small mica scales occur in both the soil and subsoil. 



The Cecil sandy loam type is well distributed over the county in many 

 large irregularly shaped bodies. Some of the more prominent areas are 

 located in the southwest corner of the county on the Catawba River, 

 along the South Carolina line, to the southwest of Cornelius, about II/2 

 miles south of Huntersville, east of N^ewell, and in the neighborhood of 

 Hickory Grove Church. Other bodies occur in Charlotte Township, 

 around Juneau, Sharon Church, Providence, and in the southern ex- 

 tremity of the county in the vicinity of Kell School and Harrison 

 Church. 



The type comprises level and gently rolling to rolling areas, becoming 

 more rolling and broken as the streams are approached. Many of the 

 broad interstream areas occur along the railroads and public roads, and 

 such areas have a very favorable topography for general farming. In 

 the southwest corner, along Catawba River, and in other places where 

 the type has been penetrated by streams, the surface is usually rolling, 

 broken, and somewhat rough. The open texture of the soil, coupled with 

 its rolling topography, insures for it excellent surface drainage. Eroded 

 and gullied areas are seen in places, and on some of the slopes and hill- 

 sides terracing is practiced to control erosion. 



The Cecil sandy loam is a residual soil and owes its origin to the 

 weathering of granites, gneisses, and schists. Usually these rocks have 

 disintegrated to a considerable depth, but on some of the slopes soil 

 erosion has kept close pace with decomposition and the accumulation of 

 the subsoil has not been deep, the rock even outcropping in places on 



