Prime Soils
Loudoun ’ s Once and Future King
By Chris Van Vlack
If you ’ re lucky enough to be a resident or even a regular visitor to Loudoun , you ’ ve probably noticed that much like Virginia , Loudoun has a little bit of everything when it comes to our geographic features . From the shore of the Potomac and relatively flat eastern Loudoun , we move to the Catoctin Ridge , the Loudoun Valley , Short Hill , “ Between the Hills ” and finally , the Blue Ridge . In between we ’ ve got unique features like the karst or limestone area encompassing northern Leesburg and Lucketts with rock outcrops and sink holes . Scenic rivers , we ’ ve got those too with Goose and Catoctin Creeks ! We ’ ve even got a natural spring cool enough to support trout at Big Spring .
With all those elevation changes and diverse features , it stands to reason that Loudoun would also be home to some pretty incredible farming operations , and of course it is ! From rolling horse , cattle , sheep , and goat pasture , to fields of wheat , corn , hay , and just about any vegetable you can imagine . Of course , being “ DC ’ s wine country ” we ’ ve got hundreds of acres of grapes , along with other fruit like apples , peaches , pears and berries .
Underlying all these farms , is one of our countries most important and probably most undervalued resources : our soil ! Just like our geography ( and people ), all soils are different , and they certainly aren ’ t “ just dirt .”
14 wander I fall • winter 2022