First off, don't add any fertilizers! Call the place you bought it and ask what kind of place did it come from. Are those high nutrient levels due to manure of some kind, or chemical fertilizers?

Now, what is the calcium level? Does it mention CEC (Cation Exchange Capacity) of the calcium and magnesium?

What was the nitrogen level?

Was there any organic matter indicated?

Were the numbers of the potassium, phosphorus and magnesium PPM (parts per million)?

Were there any other nutrient values, like sulfur or boron?

Don't panic at the pH. It's kind of high, but I don't think that's where your real problem is. You might call the lab that did the work and ask their opinion of the results they got.

My first thought was that you should 'dilute' the soil mix with regular, undoctored soil. And bring those high levels down.

But let's see what ALL the values are, okay?

Sue

The recommendation to add 2 to 3 pounds of Nitrogen per 1,000 square feet is a very common one from soil test labs no matter what the soil test indicates. A soil pH of 8.2 is very high as the article linked discusses. That the owner of that garden supply store questioned the test results from UK should indicate that you should not do further business with him. One reason why "Let the buyer beware" is still a good guide to follow.
What is the level of organic matter in that soil?
That soil test report should have had a recommendation of an amount of sulfur to add to lower the pH.

Here is a link that might be useful: soil pH

THANKS SUE:

The mix was made by the garden supply store. It was outisde in a large pile next to some other mixes they were selling. I believe it contained horse manure, compost, wood chips/bark, sawdust.

Calcium was listed as 8796. It doesn't indicate whether that's 'parts per million.' The soil ph, specifically the calcium carbonate, was too high for the CEC to be calculated according to the lab.

Other results included..

Buffer pH: 7.6
Zinc: 17.5

THANKS KIMMSR:

Yes, I feel a bit humiliated by this whole matter. My original plan was to create my soil using the square foot garden reciple of Mel Bartholomew (33% vermiculite, 33% peatmoss, 33% composts) but I thought this planting mix was going to save me a bit of time and money and I imagined this garden supply store knew what they were doing.

There's no mention of organic matter in the lab results as far as I can tell. It does state that for soils with a ph of 7 or above, adding 4 to 12 pounds of powdered sulfur per 1000 sq ft is recommended to reduce soil ph to 6.5.

By the way, the raised beds combine for a total area 64 square feet at about a foot deep. I'd much rather fix the soil I have in there now if I can do something that lowers the ph permanently and can be completed by Spring.

I'm a bit frustrated by the whole thing. I've included a link below to photos of my backyard square foot raised bed garden. I just built it a couple months ago.

Here is a link that might be useful: Photos of My Raised Bed Square Foot Home Garden

The soil ph, specifically the calcium carbonate, was too high for the CEC to be calculated according to the lab.

Well, there ya go. That stuff is full of lime. That explains the high pH and high calcium.

They give a sulfur recommendation but based on the pH and the high amount of lime, I don't think it will budge the pH nearly as much as the lab recommendation expects it to. That recommendation is probably just a computer generated value based on some of the test results. Commonly that recommendation would be based, at least partially, on the CEC which they couldn't calculate correctly. That probably left a hole in their sulfur requirement calculation and ended up giving a goofy sulfur recommendation.

The high phosphorous is likely from the manure. The high potassium is probably a combination of the manure and some green waste. If I were a betting man, I would wager the lime came in with stable bedding, which is often limed for odor control. (Suppliers will often say "manure and sawdust" instead of saying, "We're selling you the stuff that gets mucked out of stables.")

It doesn't look like they measured salinity but with the extractable potassium value, I can almost guarantee that your salinity would be a minimum of 5 to 6 dS/m due to soluble potassium alone. And that's without even knowing the salt contribution of the manure and (likely) stable bedding. An ECe of 4 is high enough to cause some plants to show poor growth performance but most vegetables do tend to have some tolerance to salinity (But not all of them). If the actual ECe is 8 dS/m or greater, that's likely to also be having a negative effect on growth performance on just about everything. (In addition to the presence of lime and very high pH). The effects will vary depending the tolerance of a particular plant to salinity and alkaline conditions.

It if were me, I would dump the stuff and get my money back.

By the way, the material described would be more of an organic soil amendment rather than a soil. If it were well composted and then incorporated into an acid soil at a reduced rate rate (dependent upon the salinity level) it would probably do a great job.

If you can get your money back, that would be fantastic. It certainly never hurts to ask. Don't feel humiliated. It is a learning process. This year I added horse manure to many of my garden beds that was contaminated with herbicide, I know your pain!! I have 2 beds that are 4 x 10 and 2 beds that are roughly 9 x 10.

If I were in your shoes I would probably add some good compost and mix that in. Then I would grow a cover crop for the winter. Whatever you can get that will tolerate the alkalinity. Then, till that in a couple of weeks before you plan to plant in the spring and mix in more good compost. I would also water the dickens out of it to begin leaching some of the lime out. If possible I would consider shovelling out half the problem dirt to another location where it could mellow over time.

I once was wooed by the seeming delights of Mel's Mix. Some of things I discovered was that it drained way too quickly, not a great advantage in a low rainfall area such as I live in. The other problem is I wanted a big garden and if I did at all with Mel's Mix I would be BROKE! So, we add compost to our beds, we add some peat and mix this all with our native clay which holds moisture much better than the mix and I add vermiculite to planting holes, it is nowhere near the 1/3 but I would have spent over $200 on vermiculite alone, which I do not have at this point. Good luck!

I find this very interesting. The past 2 springs, I have bought planter mix that was supposed to be good. Neither have been and it's taken months for the "soil" to become decent enough for plants to be happy. We seem to get ripped off all of the time by the soil bandits. Patrick, don't be embarrassed. We can only buy soil from reputable dealers and we all get ripped off! I wouldn't throw it away. If you get lots of winter rains like we do, it will wash a lot of the salts/excess lime/etc. out of the soil and in the spring it should be a different story. If you dont' get rain, water it a lot! Good luck.

Thanks everyone for the very useful information and helpful advice. I feel much more confident about handling this situation. Thank you.

Today, I took in a soil sample to the owner of the garden supply store. It's Fresh Start Growers' Supply in Louisville, KY. The owner is sending the soil off to a lab he prefers and I was told the results will come in next week. I'm going to wait and see what he says based upon those results before possibly asking for my money back.

One observation: lots of mushrooms are growing in the planting mix. Also, I have a bag of clover seeds and may try sowing them as a cover crop. I wonder if clover will grow, considering the pH.

I must add, even though the owner sold me planting mix that should instead be called "stunting mix" or "waste your time and money mix," he is at least trying to remedy the situation.

Also, I asked the owner today, when I was dropping off a sample (of his own planting mix), to remind me of the specific ingredients in the mix. Here's what he wrote out for me:

-equine compost
-top soil
-river sand
-hard wood sawdust (decomposed)
-hard wood chips (decomposed)

Here is a link that might be useful: Fresh Start Growers' Supply in Louisville, KY

The whole thing sounds very strange to me. It almost sounds like they sold you PURE FERTILIZER!

-equine compost..... IF COMPOSTED, SHOULD BE NEAR NEUTRAL
-top soil......... MOST OF JEFFERSON CO. APPEARS ACIDIC*
-river sand .......(DITTO)
-hard wood sawdust (decomposed)..... ACIDIC
-hard wood chips (decomposed)...... ACIDIC

So, if all of the ingredients he listed are either fairly neutral or acidic, where is that high pH level coming from?

The manure is the most likely source, but it shouldn't still be high if a) it was composted, and b) 'diluted' with all the other ingredients.

And even if they did add lime, I really don't think that any of the usual garden limes could raise the pH that high, even if they added a lot. Dolomite lime only has a pH of 7, so if lime was added I'm wondering if they used hydrated lime (Calcium hydroxide) -- it has a pH of 12.4. But he didn't list lime as an ingredient, did he?

Suggestion, just for fun: Find a clear quart jar w/a lid (a clean mayo jar will do) and add two cups of this stuff, then fill almost to the top with water and shake very well. Wait one minute, and mark the level of what has settled. Wait 3 minutes, and mark the next layer that has settled. The very bottom layer should be small gravel and sand, the next is silt, and after 3 days or so, the top layer (if jar is undisturbed) should be clay (very fine clay will stay suspended in the water). Anything chunkier than fine clay that is floating is organic. It will give you an idea of what percentages you've got.

Personally, there are too many questions here. I would just tell him to send someone out to collect the 'soil', give you your money back, and you will get some from a more reliable source.

If he objects, suggest that a bunch of pickets and the media might be interested if it's a slow news day. Maybe it wasn't his fault, but he's selling it.

I guess you should have the lab test done on any prospective soil BEFORE you buy it.

* from USDA soil data of Jefferson Co, KY, see link below.
Sue

Here is a link that might be useful: Jefferson Co., KY soil data

I really don't think that any of the usual garden limes could raise the pH that high, even if they added a lot.
They certainly will.
And yes, I've seen the wacky myth about dolomite having a pH of 7 and buffering soil to 7 regardless of pH. Dolomite is calcium carbonate and magnesium carbonate. Both of which serve to raise, and only raise, and never lower the pH. The chemistry behind the pH shift very straight forward and well understood.

If the soil is kept, I think I would apply soil sulfur this fall.

Adding sulfur may just exacerbate the problem. He's got more trouble than just a high pH.

Gargwarb, the supplier didn't even LIST lime as part of the mix, so did they add some or not, and what kind? And if they did add dolomite, HOW MUCH would they have had to add to increase the pH to that level?

Too many unanswered questions.

Sue

Stables and farmers add lime to reduce odors in the stalls. We've had previous discussions on that I believe.

Garden lime - CaCO3 - has a buffer pH at 8.3 if I remember correctly. Added in large amounts it could overwhelm everything else so 8.2 is not outrageous.

Dolomitic lime should be around that same level I would think, don't know what the buffer pH of a mag/carbonate system would be but probably not too different from Ca.

But ag lime - CaO or Ca(OH)2 - would have a VERY high pH as belgianpup said, and would not be out of the question for farm manure.

Adding sulfur may just exacerbate the problem. He's got more trouble than just a high pH.

I agree. I would just dump the stuff and start from scratch.

Gargwarb, the supplier didn't even LIST lime as part of the mix

They never do. It is often brought in with the stable bedding, which they often refer to as "horse manure and shavings".

so did they add some or not
They tripe-play of:
1- It's common practice
2- high pH
3- high calcium
Says, by golly, it's far more likely that it's been added than not.

and what kind?
Calcium carbonate AKA: barn lime (or garden lime)

HOW MUCH would they have had to add to increase the pH to that level?

That depends on the acidity of the other materials. A couple snow shovel fulls into the stable every couple of weeks oughta do it.

"They tripe-play of:" was supposed to be "The triple-play of:"
(yikes, what happened there)

I'll second what gargwarb is saying!

But I still don't understand how the levels could be so high when they say they mixed it with soil, sand, sawdust and wood chips.

Patrickometry, I hope they realize that they're lucky that they only have to deal with you, because they sure as 'ell wouldn't want to deal with ME!

Be sure and let us know how this turns out.

Sue

But I still don't understand how the levels could be so high when they say they mixed it with soil, sand, sawdust and wood chips.

The amount of lime in the stable bedding will depend greatly on how much lime the person managing the stables uses. Some are very heavy handed with the stuff.

And notice, they never mentioned the ratios of the individual components. I bet the stable bedding (equine compost) makes up a pretty large percentage of the material because I Gar-own-tee that the person producing the final product gets it for free. It's a "great" way to increase volume (and profit) while only increasing your overhead by the price of gas and an hour or two of labor to go pick it up.

Also consider that it may not take us much lime to shift the pH as you might be thinking. Is there a good chance that the soil and sand are acid? Well sure, but we don't know that for certain. But let's say they are acidic. Sand has a very low buffer capacity and it takes very little lime to raise its pH. "Soil" could mean anything and may, itself have a very low clay and organic content and, consequently, low buffer capacity. That's all guess work though. I'm just throwing out possible factors that are legitimate to consider when figuring out how the pH got so high.

You also mentioned the acidic nature of hardwood. Yes, when raw but when composted, the pH will shift towards neutral. Since all but the mineral soil component of the final blend will have a tendency to shift towards neutral, it takes very little lime to push it all into the alkaline range. With not an unreasonable amount more, you're pushing a pH of 8+.

I recognize the high pH and calcium levels, but has anyone considered nitrogen depletion (sorry if I missed it in an earlier post)? The OP states stunted growth and only raddishs and nitrogen fixing peas growing as well as a recco to add nitrogen from UK. Also, later the OP mentions seeing mushrooms (sign of decomposing hardwood). If the guy put in hardwood mulch, you will get pale yellow, and no growth plants until the decomposition slows enough to stop depleting the nitrogen. Sawdust is also notorious for this. I know this, because I've experienced this with some Miracle Grow mix loaded with hardwood.

Excellent point.

I'm back to give an update on my raised bed soil problem situation.

I did get my money back last fall from the owner of the gardening center. In addition to my money, he also gave me a small bag of various fertilizing ingredients mixed together to sprinkle on the soil, which I did last fall. Also, he gave me a larger bag of various cover crop seeds to plant in the fall including rye grass, vetch and peas to turn over into the soil in the spring in order to infuse nitrogen and more organic material, which I did. Also, I added a couple of 40 pound compost-plus-manure bags from Lowe's and mixed those in a few weeks ago.

Now, a couple weeks ago, I planted a few cabbage transplants in one of my raised beds. To compare, I also planted two of the cabbage transplants on the same day just a few feet away directly in my backyard soil (the backyard soil had been covered with newspaper and my own compost in the fall to prepare a new flower bed). In short, the cabbage in the raised bed with the problem soil are not growing but the cabbage growing in my backyard soil are thriving. The raised bed transplants are just sitting there, stunted, not growing. There is no difference in performance even after all the various treatments I've tried. I'm seeing the same disappointing frustrating results as in the fall.

So, I'm going to replace all the soil in the raised beds, as many of you suggested. The three raised beds only combine for a total growing area of 64 square feet so it's doable.

I suppose I could just mix some of my own backyard soil with some organic amendments like compost, peat, etc. Anything is better than what's in there now. Originally I had planned on Mel Bartholomew's special mix: 1/3 compost, 1/3 peat moss and 1/3 vermiculite but I found that too expensive for my budget. Any suggestions?

I looked at your facebook photos, but can you post an updated photo for you update of the plants not growing the soil in view the plants. Sometimes one may dx the soil from the growth of the plants.

My soil is sandy loam. Its basically fine sand and alot of organic material. I use my original soil with manure layered on top covered in woodchips.

Couldnt you mix your original soil with compost and peat or shpagum? Top it with manure and something else? Do you have clay soil or sandy?

Sorry to hear that!

I'm guessing you didn't add sulfur or anything else last fall to acidify the soil? The pH is probably still high.