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Morpheuspa, Please help with soil test May 2016

10 years ago
last modified: 10 years ago

Morpheus,

In Zone 6b/7a., PA. I'm looking to overseed in the fall with some kbg, and possibly do a small reno. After I sent for the soil test, I dropped a bag of lime at around 7lb/k and some milogranite at the bag stated value. I should've waited for the test results but was too impatient. Please let me know what I should be adding to the lawn. Thanks.

Comments (5)

  • 10 years ago

    Would probably help to post the soil test results.

    Overseeding KBG into an existing lawn can be a futile endeavor without the help of a PGR.

  • 10 years ago

    What kind of lime and how much, exactly, per thousand square feet? Your calcium levels actually are a bit low, but magnesium is very high so dolomitic lime would have been a very bad idea...

    Since I have to wait on that, I can read the other stuff for right now. The stuff that's off is below:

    Phosphorus 36: Very low, my target would be about 200. We use starter fertilizer for this, and just get the cheapest. They're all the same. Recommendations below.

    Yeah, that's really it except for the calcium. :-)

    Recommendations:

    Now: Feed the lawn with starter fertilizer at the bag rate.

    September 1: Feed the lawn with starter fertilizer at the bag rate.

    October 1: Feed the lawn with starter fertilizer at the bag rate.

  • 10 years ago
    last modified: 10 years ago

    Thank you so much for replying! I used the following lime http://m.lowes.com/pd/Sta-Green-30-Pound-S-Organic-Garden-Lime/50189499 one of your thread said it was decent not as good as magical but available at lowes. 7lb/k Also what type of soil do I have?

  • 10 years ago

    Gotcha! That wasn't a mistake. It's effectively the same stuff as what I recommend, but slower. Magnesium levels of 0.4% are negligible, so it's fine to continue use of that below--just realize it won't work as fast. That's not a problem as you're not in bad shape.

    I did short-cut your read before while we were waiting for more information, so...

    EC 7.1: Sand with some to considerable silt. It's going to drift a little faster than some of the higher EC soils we see, but it's not a bad soil to grow a lawn in. It'll probably need testing every other year once stabilized, maybe every third year.

    pH 6.1: Always the symptom, never the disease, and not much of a symptom in this case. It's lowered by your low calcium and raised by your high magnesium, bringing it to just a little low overall. Because of the higher Mg, we'll probably end up balancing a little higher than average, but that's not a problem.

    OM 3.1%: In the Fair range. In a lower EC soil, like yours, I never object to raising OM to Good (4-6%) or Excellent (6%+). So always mulch mow, mow all your fall leaves, and consider asking neighbors if you can have theirs if they're easy to transport to your property. Over the years, that will slowly lift this number, and it's not an emergency.

    Sulfur 7: A tad lower than normal, but certainly not a problem. Raising your OM levels will tend to raise sulfur.

    Phosphorus 36: I'll copy from above: Very low, my target would be about 200. We use starter fertilizer for this, and just get the cheapest. They're all the same. Recommendations below.

    Calcium 53.9%: While my target is 65% and this is low, it's not extreme and not deficient. We do want to lime to add calcium (gypsum later on might be another possibility), but slower lime is fine so you can continue to use the Sta Green. Recommendations below.

    Magnesium 22.1%: Very high. Avoid anything but trace magnesium sources. High magnesium tends to make soils tighter and hard to dig, but in your soil I doubt that'll be too much of an issue. This is high, but not extreme, and certainly not a chemical problem for the plants.

    Potassium 4.1%: Exactly in the perfect range. Although I do like potassium, I won't recommend adding any here, although you certainly don't have to avoid incidental potassium sources.

    Minor Elements: Copper and Zinc are high, while boron is low (boron isn't a critical element but does influence lawn quality). I'm going to make the boron recommendation with the realization that it might not be a convenient thing for you to do. If not, no problem, we've got bigger fish to fry this year. Iron is, actually, perfect. You don't need to avoid iron sources, but don't require them, either.

    Boron 0.25: We use Milorganite as a carrier and 20 Mule Team Borax as the boron source. You can purchase 20 Mules at the grocery store in the laundry section. In a wheelbarrow or the like, dump the Milo. Spraying very, very lightly with water (I use a spray bottle like the kind people use to damp their clothes when they iron) will help the boron stick. Add the recommended amount of 20 Mule Team Borax and stir, spraying occasionally to get the stuff to stick to the Milo. Then apply over the recommended area. So if going for bag rate Milorganite (1 bag per 2,500 square feet), you'd add 10 tablespoons of 20 Mule Team Borax.

    Recommendations:

    (Already Done) 7 pounds per thousand Sta Green Calcitic Lime.

    Now: Feed the lawn with starter fertilizer at the bag rate.

    June 15: Apply 4 tablespoons of 20 Mule Team Borax in Milorganite carrier, if convenient.

    September 1: Feed the lawn with starter fertilizer at the bag rate.

    October 1: Feed the lawn with starter fertilizer at the bag rate.

    October 15: Apply 7 pounds per thousand square feet of Sta Green Calcitic Lime.

  • 10 years ago

    Thanks again. You're awesome!!

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