Understanding Your Soil Test Results
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 30 ธ.ค. 2019
- A soil test is a good idea for every gardener and understanding your soil test results will help you improve your soil for the best plant growth. While the appearance of soil test reports may differ from laboratory to laboratory, you can expect that the soil information will be consistent. Look for information on pH, soil texture, percentage of organic material, and the amount of elemental nutrients. (Video #115)
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I also used CSU for testing soil, they were very helpful, even CALLED ME personally, they'd changed the format for submitting. Now in Ohio, which (gag) THE Ohio State University is supposed to be so superior, debatable, they don't do soils test anymore, contract out to private entities in Indiana? Go figure. I had AMAZING soil at our place in CO, perfect for root crops, grew amazing potatoes & beets, OMG! I'm now starting from scratch here in Ohio, so I need all the help I can get. The old fellow that owned this before me was a BIG gardener, SO the soil may be built up. Normally it's got a lot of clay here. Recent hole I dug has at least a good 10 inches of good looking top soil. Then you hit the clayish layers. I JUST got my test results back, so your channel is very helpful. I'm trying to rely less on commercial fertilizers, make homemade fertilizers - I'm kinda a mad scientist (Chem degree from UCCS). Commercial chemical Fertilizer production are really bad for the environment, and relying on more natural biosystems I think are better in the long run. Looking forward to your perspective on gardening.
Thank you Scott for all this valuable information
My corn didn’t produce well and some tomatoes were colorless which I never saw so soil testing is needed so thank you.
Thanks for sharing this information Gardener Scott! Have a happy New Year!
Thank you, Stan. Happy New Year to you!
$15 at the local Missouri Extension office. I called them to ask questions about the report I received. Very helpful information for a minimal cost.
Wishing you all the very best for 2020 my friend. Looking forward to more great stuff in the year to come.
Thank you so much. Happy New Year!
Thanks for taking time to make these very informative videos. Wish you and your family a very good 2020.
Thank you. Marvin. Best wishes to you.
Good info. video, Thank you! Happy New Year!
Thank you. Happy New Year to you!
Several years ago, before deciding to have my soil tested, I did a little bit of research about the topic. Among many things I learned is that soil tests for N may not be very accurate or helpful. The reason being that N levels are relatively transient (I hope that's the right word). If I remember correctly, the longer the time period between collecting the soil sample and the time the sample is analyzed is critical.
Cheers and thanks for posting.
You're right. And the temperature variation during storing, shipping, and testing can affect the N results. I operate under the assumption that my nitrogen levels will always be low. P and K are less transient so their levels should be more precise.
@@GardenerScott Thanks for the quick reply. Everybody likes to be "right" ... so thanks for that too.
Looks like a simple easy to understand layout. I like the suggestions sections. Getting my first this spring hope it's easy to read.
Good for you, Tom. I hope it's easy too.
Good stuff. Due to corrective action based on a soil sample I nearly doubled my apple crop. Happy New year!
Thanks. And thanks for the validating info. Happy New Year to you too.
really interesting. thank you !
Thanks.
Thank You So Much ❗for demonstrating and explaining how to amend and feed my soil for change & health. Food was growing, but not flourishing. Only enough to share small amounts. I will have the soil test done ~ my meter reads 7.0, but the trace minerals must be terribly off. For a couple of years, I didn't even have worms. ~ I will also need to pay more attention to my watering patterns. 🚰 I have 3 water butts for rainwater capture so as to lessen the use of tap water💦. I live in Virginia, which means hot & humid summers but OK winters, so that has prompted me to build & experiment with small insect netting cages {to protect my blueberries}. The cages also helped with raising the temperature for overwintering my kales, cabbages, beets, carrots, swiss chard, spring onion & mustards. They are small enough that I can move them from bed to bed as needed. I also have 3 medium polytunnels that help with sowing, potting out, & storage. ~ I hope to be able to inspire & teach a small group of youth soon. You have been a mentor & blessing to me, & I will pay your lessons forward!!!🌱🪱🥬
Happy New Year ☺️
Happy New Year to you.
I had watched your previous video on soil testing and after some challenges in my 1st year of gardening, sent off samples for testing. Very interesting report, lots of information. As I listened to this, I was going over my results. Basically my loamy sand soil is/was very low in nitrogen. This fall/winter I have planted a cover crop to help (hopefully) amend the soil and covered all the raised beds (horse troughs and Birdies Beds) with leaves from my maple tree. This is all so fascinating. Thank you for sharing your knowledge!
So glad you're learning and finding it fascinating. Keep enjoying gardening.
These videos about testing your soil inspired me to send my sample off for a complete analysis. Thank you! I've been using a set of 10 raised beds (4'x8') for several years with good results. But, other than testing PH, I had no idea how I was doing. The test results were very encouraging. I was "high' on organic content and "very high" on the important elements and minerals EXCEPT nitrogen. So, now I know to focus this year on nitrogen and slow down on the other organics I've been using in my homemade organic fertilizer. I blend lime, cotton meal, bloodmeal, kelp meal, etc.for my slow release that I add each year along with a fresh layer of compost. It is reassuring how good the soil has become after so many years of augmenting it. Thanks for all your good advice.
Great efforts, Bud. Targeting nutrient deficiencies the the right way to get perfect soil.
Soil tests have shocked me lol, my soil in my vineyard was fine year 1, by year 3 it was depleted, my soil is acidic sand with a PH of 5.8 and a CEC of 2 it is about the most difficult soil you can possibly have to amend. @@GardenerScott
I definitely think I will break down and finally get my soil tested. It's so different in the front and back yards I'm thinking I should submit as two separate tests. Thanks for the video!
Good plan. 👍
Wow! Colorado and Northern Arizona have similar gardening needs. My soil is more clay, and it’s more alkaline.
I pay attention to what testing "method" they use (preferring the Albrech method). I ignore anything they say about nitrogen as 1) it's volatile, so a sample today and a sample tomorrow will be completely different. 2)In over 40 years (some growing up on a row crop farm, and gardening as well), I've never ever received a report that didn't suggest adding some kind of nitrogen, and that in ground that when growing say beans, have had enormous aphid pressure, a sign of excess nitrogen. This last go around I split my samples into two and sent one to the Univ of Arkansas extension office as well as Logan Labs, supposedly using the same method. There was an overall 10% difference between the two on the same samples. Logan includes organic material in the base test, UofA it's an add on. I'm hoping to start Elaine Ingham's course in Jan.
The ultimate test is.. how are your plants doing. Secondarilly, how is the life in and under the soil doing. Those can tell you a lot. The soil tests are good when starting on new (to you) ground to see where you are starting from chemically. Perhaps annually (or even bi-annually if in intensive growing) for a bit then semi-annually and as an occasional spot check to add data to observations.
In the end, if the soil is healthy, if there is abundant life in the soil, if pretty much no matter how much rain falls there is little run off (the organic material is soaking it up and holding it), while at the same time less need to irrigate in drier times (compared to neighbors who do the whole cake mix chemical growing style) and the plants grow like Jacks magic bean stalk, the numbers on the paper are interesting, but not critical. Kinda like going to a Doctor, she may write "orders" but in the end.. the doctor is just a consultant, you are the decision maker and overall artist.
Thanks. I agree with you. I grow with the assumption that nitrogen will always be low and also don't give much trust to the nitrogen numbers. Enjoy the Elaine Ingham course; that sounds great.
Happy New Year from Auckland, New Zealand it’s Wednesday, January 1, 2020.
Happy New Year to you!
INTERESTING
I like the minerals part... Potassium banana peeling potatoes peels.. Phosphorus I think is in ash and charcoal? I think but not positive... Zinc?... I added rocks around my garden and a few week plants perked up I know being newly blasted road cut rock it would let the minerals leach out slowly... I added some rock dust for minerals too...... Love how they suggest natural ways with compost you will get more than just nitrogen many minerals as well
Ash and charcoal are usually high in potassium; potash (pot ash) is a common name for potassium fertilizer. Minerals are an important part of garden soil.
@@GardenerScott I thought so thanks for clarifying that... Have a happy new growing year... Thanks for showing us what soil test results can look like... I've been debating about having one done... Thanks
I am waiting for my soil test to come back, I got my leaf tissue sample results back, I have high NPK, Boron, the only low is Magnesium.
What crazy is I haven't added anything but tons of wood chip cover, and tilled some in after decomposing.
So I'm hoping I can remedy it, easily.
Chúc anh và gia đình năm mới vui vẻ và hạnh phúc.
I'm going to take a soil sample this week! Any body use, Midwest Laboratories? Sounds like the pricing is similar, too.
time to add some pot/wood ash?
The county soil survey I found pretty accurately describes the soil in the 8x4 bed I turned over this fall as a grey silty clay loam. It has moderate permeability, high water retention, and low organic matter content. I'm pretty sure adding organic material is the first thing needed, and I've added a large bag of leaves and about 6 gallons of coffee/tea grinds. I also have a compost pile that will be ready to add when the soil can be worked again in March.
I also tested a couple of dried samples, one with vinegar and the other with baking soda. Neither fizzed, so it might be slightly acidic or alkaline, but it's probably close enough to pH neutral.
If I scale up to growing more than a small bed and 20 containers, then I think professional testing would be needed, but for now I'm just growing food for me.
You sound like you have a good understanding of your personal gardening needs. If it works, keep doing it.
@@GardenerScott Thanks. It's an interesting experience shifting from using soil as a construction material to a growing medium. I can't help being somewhat of an engineer about it.
i am planing to do a soil test after i have spent some time improving my soil a little. Im on London clay so i know whats wrong with it. LOL I am a Geologist so i know the benefit of testing lol
What are your thoughts on planting something like clover in with the plants to increase the nitrogen level?
Planting legumes and other nitrogen sources like clover can be helpful, but it's important that the plant material is incorporated back into the soil before flowering and fruiting. If you let the clover flower, the clover plant will have used all of the nitrogen that it generated just for those flowers and it won't benefit other plants.
I'm trying my utmost to understand soil composition for healthy veggies and this video, along with another of yours, gave me the encouragement I need to send in soil samples to my local extension office-so thank you!! But I have a question: I have three 8x4 garden beds and I suspect each of them has a different soil composition. This is partly due to the fact that one bed looks like the previous owner added wood ash, while the other beds don't appear to have that matter. Also, I'm not sure how careful the owner was in mixing the soil components that he ordered delivered (unmixed) from a garden center. Would you recommend getting three separate tests-one for each bed? Thanks, Gardner Scott! (I've been scouring your channel, watching all your videos and I really, really love what you're doing here. Thanks so much for sharing your knowledge. :) )
For best results, it is a good idea to get separate tests if you suspect they are different.
diddnt need a soil test in my yard. It was clear the moment I stuck a shovel in it that it was all rocks and hard packed solid clay. Been unable to grow anything in it so I have done all raised beds with compost. Even the peach trees I put in couldnt handle the clay and have all hardly grown.
Hard packed clay can be miserable. Raised beds is a good idea.
I got my soil sample back, 1% organic, I took it deep in a area that hasn't been amended with organics.
So now I'm going to send 2 more soil samples, to see what the Alfalfa/wood chips have done.
I know it's healthy as it's loaded with earth worms, and the trees are putting roots into the layer of humus altered top layer.
Not I need to research how to reduce the Boron, as it's high in the native soil.
Need to study how to read these samples, as in high PH, calcium, what surprising high sulphur to, so I'm in study mode, any suggestions.
I like the idea of taking samples after amending to see the results. You're on the right track in learning how to interpret the results. Continue amending. I think a soil test every 3-5 years helps to track how your efforts are working.
Soil tests through the extension where I live is $60 for a simple one, so I don't think it's worth it to do it every single year. However, my new arctic kiwi plant's leaves were yellowing this past summer, and I really don't want to lose it, so I'll get a test done in that area this year - too late for the optimal autumn test, but better late than never. I also need to bring some extra compost in, as my pile isn't enough for my entire garden. I'm thinking about getting some city compost (the "green bin" pick-up is mandatory where I live). What do you think about that kind of compost?
I agree it is too expensive for testing every year. City compost can be a cheap and easy source, but my concern is about the potential chemical contamination. People who spray pesticides and herbicides will be adding their greens to the mix. Some chemical residue may be strong enough to harm your plants and soil life. I would suggest using it in small areas until you could use it and see if there are any bad effects.
Thanks a lot for that reminder. Although using non-organic herbicides & pesticides on personal lawns illegal in Halifax, NS, where I live, it isn't in other parts of the province, and this compost includes other areas as well - plus, some people are breaking the law, I'm sure. I was only thinking about food scraps - not yard waste. There's one producer of pure leaf compost, which I imagine should be safe... I already use lots of old seaweed which washes up on the shore all over the place, and whatever salt is left hasn't seemed to hurt things (the salinity wasn't high when I did the last soil test a couple of years ago), but I wonder if my garden needs more than that plus the small amount of finished compost from my kitchen scraps pile. I have a pretty sizable leaf pile but no way to shred the leaves (my lawn mower doesn't have a bag, and it's windy here 99% of the time), so that won't be ready for years to come. Any ideas?
Anne, leaves are a great way to solve problems and improve the garden. Making leaf mould is one of my favorite garden solutions, but as you say it can take years. I've had success bagging the leaves, allowing them to dry, and then crushing them inside the bags; my grandkids enjoyed rolling on top of the bags like big pillows. Then they're added to piles to break down. You can accelerate the decomposition by adding nitrogen sources to the leaves. Consider mixing the leaves and seaweed. It should hasten the breakdown and the resulting leaf mould/compost would be rich with minerals and nutrients.
Those are great ideas - thanks a lot!
how would you improve the soil ability to retain little more water, so you dont have to water that often??.
Adding organic matter to soil is a good way.
Thank you for video to test the soy. Could you tell me and give me the address of University of testing you so please?
I used Colorado State University but you can do a search for soil testing at a university near you.
Please HELP I have a great deal of used coffee grounds. What can I do with them. I know this hasn't got anything to do with reports,but I hate just throwing them away. I also have a lot of goat manure. Thank you in advance for your help. Happy New Year.
Many gardeners would be envious of you, Beverly. Coffee grounds can easily be used in the garden. Add them to a compost pile. If you don't have a pile yet, mix them with the manure and some leaves and start one. You can spread them on the soil along with mulch. Add them to a worm bin as food. You can also just mix them into soil as an organic amendment.
Sorry, first time big bogus. Learn to understand how the soil food web works and You´ll have all the plants need in abundance as the plant is in need of it.Including less watering, no fertilisation and so on... anyway, thumb up, I really and honestly appreciate Your work!
It would be interesting to compare your results with test kits on the market. My understanding is that it is important to use DISTILLED water when doing a do-it-yourself soil test.
Good suggestion and I plan on doing that video in a few months. I have a couple different test kits and will be filming once my soil thaws out. I do use distilled water to minimize variations.
How much cost to test the soil?
depends. for homeowners in Arkansas one test a year is free (for basic test, organic material is extra), other states may be free or small charge. Private labs are fee only of course, but may (or may not) be more accurate or tailored to your needs or growing style. Google the extension office for your state, and testing labs in general. I use local Extension / University and Logan Labs as well when I test.
@@HippocratesGarden I asked how much it will cost to test the soil for agricultural purpose here in the Philippines and I was astonished they quoted about USD2000
@@paulkawsek8617 Wow.. are they sending it to the continent?
@@HippocratesGarden I better ask why they charge so much. It should not cost that much
I’m in the states and going through our local extension office it was $7 a test. I have many raised beds and this allowed me the chance to get several tested at a low cost to get a good overall idea of what I needed to focus on.
It just seems like an unnecessary step 😬
It's a great tool, especially when just getting started gardening or when you've moved to new land, but it's only one tool of many and should not be taken as divinely inspired information. And like any tool, it's only as good as the person using it.
I went years thinking the same thing and it isn't absolutely necessary. You can easily garden without a soil test, but it does make a big difference if you know how to use the results. I agree that it is just a tool.