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If you really want to have a successful garden to go with your early start, don't guess-soil test!
So easy to do and no one would take off on a long road trip without a map, so why would you not want to know the quality and available nutrients in your soil to grow the very best flowers and vegetables.
GETTING THE SAMPLES:
All you need is a garden trowel, a clean container and a paper towel or clean rag. In order to get a good overall idea of the quality of your soil and what nutrients are present, it is important to take the time to take several over all random samples. Keep in mind the soil test results are only as good as the samples taken. So take your "equipment" out in your garden and dig a small hole about 2 inches across and 6 inches deep. Take the soil you have dug and put in your container, (a clean plastic bucket works great for this), wipe off your trowel and move to another spot. I normally try to do at least a dozen samples in random areas of my garden. Once you are done digging, combine all the soil and throughly mix this will give a true reflection of the soil in your area. When collecting your soil samples do avoid areas that would skew the tests. For example and area where you have burned fall leaves, or the spot where you had a compost pile will not get accurate results for the other areas of your garden.
Now that you've collected the soil, you need to submit it to the soil lab. Your state Department of Agriculture or county Cooperative Extension Service is usually responsible for testing soil. Often, this is a free service; however, some states do charge a minimal fee to cover cost. (Either way, it's a great deal compared with commercial testing facilities.) Check your state's Department of Agriculture Website or contact your local cooperative extension agent for any submission requirements. Soil labs may require special boxes for submitting soil samples, along with a form to determine what crops to provide recommendations for. (These boxes, forms and shipping instructions are generally available at your county Cooperative Extension Service.)
There are some states that have private labs that also do soil testing as well. In addition there are kits that can be purchased from any nursery or website that also give fairly accurate if not as detailed results. They are fairly inexpensive and come in both box types and electronic gadgets as well.
Any way you do it, as soil sample is an easy and excellent way to help get you started on the right path to a great garden. Knowing what nutrients you need to add to your soil before planting is both an inexpensive and smart way to make your garden grow. This is also a great way to check your soil if you have had less than wonderful results from an area of your garden that has done well before, this way you can make corrections and add anything that is missing.
UNDERSTANDING YOUR SOIL TEST REPORT:
Soil pH: Soil pH is a measure of how acidic or alkaline your soil is. Soil pH directly affects nutrient availability. The pH scale ranges from 0 to 14, with 7 as neutral. Numbers less than 7 indicate acidity, while numbers greater than 7 indicate an alkaline soil. Plants thrive best in different soil pH ranges. Azaleas, rhododendrons, blueberries and conifers thrive best in acid soils (pH 5.0 to 5.5). Vegetables, grasses and most ornamentals do best in slightly acidic soils (pH 5.8 to 6.5). Soil pH values above or below these ranges may result in less vigorous growth or symptoms of nutrient deficiencies.
Nutrients: Nutrients for healthy plant growth are divided into three categories: primary, secondary and micro nutrients Nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P) and potassium (K) are primary nutrients, which are needed in fairly large quantities compared to the other nutrients.
Calcium (Ca), magnesium (Mg) and sulfur (S) are secondary nutrients which are required by the plant in lesser quantities but are no less essential for good plant growth than the primary nutrients. Zinc (Zn) and manganese (Mn) are micro nutrients which are required by plants in very small amounts. Most secondary and micro nutrient deficiencies are easily corrected by keeping the soil at the optimum pH value. For example when we old time gardeners tell you to spray tomato and pepper blossoms with Epsom salts, we're not nuts, but we know that tomatoes are especially heavy feeders and they are sucking up the Mg(magnesium) and Ca(Calcium) in the soil to produce lots of fruit. Peppers while not such heavy feeders do like a little extra Mg. The soil and it's fruit and flowers are working hard to produce, you need to provide the building blocks to help that happen.
Nitrogen: Available nitrogen is taken up by plant roots in the form of nitrate (NO3-) and ammonium (NH4+). Nitrogen testing is not recommended because the levels of available nitrogen are variable due to its mobility in the soil. The available forms of nitrogen are very water soluble and move rapidly through the soil profile with rainfall and irrigation. This causes the amount in the root zone to fluctuate over time. Recommendations are based on the requirements of the particular plants you are growing. For those who have not done it, a word to the wise. If a little nitrogen is good, more is better does not work that way. You'll get wonderful, lush greenery and no fruit. We've all done it.
If you are still puzzled by your results your county extension agent should be able to provide you with further information on all the details.
ABOUT THE HOME SOIL TEST KIT:
The Home Soil Test Kit is easy-to-use and complete with pH ranges and ideal NPK levels for over 100 plants. It tests for pH, nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium and has been adapted for the home gardener. These are very easy to use and understand.
Credits: all from public domain and my personal experience
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Author Bio Box: Catherine Smith
Please visit me at my site: http://www.helium.com
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