Soil testing

[seedcorn]

...thinking...i wonder if this is the result of too much miracle grow...

From salt level too much 19-19-19. Depending on crop, I'd take a 7.0 pH. Sample called it high--for blueberries. I bet the plants are dark green.

 

[897tgigvib]

Seed, wouldn't the Sodium and those high metals make nutrient uptake be reduced?

I'd think that lots of root microbes of the beneficial kind would help though. That's me though, rainbow hippy nature lover me

I actually don't know what the best numbers would be, but I think this is a TRULY GREAT TOPIC!

 

[Southern Gardener]

We had to do a soil test on our beds for the Master Gardener class and got the results back last week. The teacher went through everyones results and we were shown how to interpret the results and what amendments we needed. I think this was my favorite class.

I took samples from my herb garden and sis took samples from the vegetable garden. Both came back with great readings - just needed to add nitrogen before planting.

Something I did learn was that compost raises the PH level- I'm glad I know that since the Ph level (IMO) is a little high in the veg garden so I won't be adding compost.

I've never had a soil test done since I've been gardening, and I've actually been able to grow things.

 

[897tgigvib]

How did you do the test, and please, tell us how to interpret it...teach us EVERYTHING you learn about this...please?

 

[Southern Gardener]

LOL! Marshall, I doubt I can teach you anything about gardening you don't already know. I'll tell you how we took the samples and post the results later - right now I have to get ready for work. TTFN

 

[Ridgerunner]

There are so many good benefits to compost that I'd suggest you not give up on it. Compost pH can be a bit high, which means it is alkaline. Most vegetables prefer the soil a bit acidic. That sounds like a great topic to discuss with your Master Gardener instructor. If they are anything like the few I've known I bet they will be horrified to think you've given up on compost. I doubt it will be anywhere near the problem you imagine. The volume of the compost versus the volume of the soil it is mixed with makes a difference. And there are easy fixes if your pH gets too high.

Small farmers all over the world have been feeding their families for thousands of years without benefit of soils tests. My father grew vegetables on the same plot for over 50 years. My grandfather grew vegetables on the same plot his grandfather was using during the Civil War. I seriously doubt they ever had a soils test performed. They depended on these gardens to feed their families.

They were not dummies. They had certain things they did with certain crops. They could often tell by how the plant was growing if they needed to do something specific. They were really close to the soil. It was their livelihood.

There is no doubt that the more you know about the soil and the requirements for the specific plant you are growing the better you can do growing plants. And for some things, like the pH requirements for blueberries, its pretty essential you have a good handle on it. Thats the main reason I got my pH meter, though it comes in handy in the garden too.

I look at this with the 80-20 rule. Youll probably get 80% of the benefit with 20% of the work. Its not a lot of work for me to stick my pH meter in the ground when the soil is damp and turn it on. I can get a lot of benefit out of that. I could determine the calcium in my soil in different areas but thats more work. I might get some benefit from that, but as somebody mentioned before, managing the pH level is probably a lot more beneficial and for me is a lot easier.

 

[digitS']

. . . Something I did learn was that compost raises the PH level. . .

But! What about all those humic acids that are in decayed organic matter?

Most things in the dry interior of the Wild West are of a alkaline nature (high pH). With little organic matter around to decay into the soil, the mineral content prevails. Even the well water has a high pH for my gardens. I see increasing the organic content of the soil as a way to buffer the plants - a "freshening" of their environment

.

And then, as has been suggested, there are the different requirements of different plants. There are some garden plants that will do well in 1 environment and not another. Now, a gardener may not want 1,000 square feet of just artichokes but working with existing conditions with some additional efforts certainly makes sense against the "rolling boulders uphill " that some folks get themselves into.

Steve

 

[seedcorn]

Steve xplained it well why soil test in home garden is so hard to go by. I use wood ashes where I know my peppers will go (pot Ashe) and calcium products where tomatoes go. I keep sweet corn in same plot and just deal with the root worms and wire worms.

 

[seedcorn]

Marshall, if I had a high rate of heavy metals, I'd move my garden. Another reason I hate products from 3rd world nations, export to us heavy metals in their products.

Soil samples need to be taken as deep as you think the roots will go. In Ag, 6-8". How many and where depends if you are doing it the old way, grid sampling, or soil type.

 

[897tgigvib]

Do 3rd world poor nations really import heavy metals in fertilizer and soil products?

Why don't we stop such importation?