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gregory_eleser

Help with soil test

9 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago

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Comments (8)

  • 9 years ago

    Uh ... your links aren't working.

  • 9 years ago

    The second link will work, but the pop-ups and scripts nearly crashed my computer. I did finally get the Logan Labs image.

    Is this a raised bed? How old? What have you amended it with? What have you tried to grow in it (blueberries?) and what have been your results?

    A quick overview indicates that you are not going to be happy with an analysis: If this was chocolate milk, it's all syrup and no milk.

  • 9 years ago

    two year old raised bed. Growing vegetables

    used manure, lime, fertilizer

  • 9 years ago

    When and how much manure and lime, when and what fertilizers and how much..and how do your vegetables grow, i.e., results?

  • 9 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I hope you don't think that I'm giving you a hard time or that I'm being judgemental.

    The test result values indicate a high possibility of sampling error.. For instance, too much of the top inch of soil was sampled for soil that has been topdressed with amendments or the sample was taken too soon after an amendment application and the soil hasn't had time to re-balance.

    CEC: 24.27, rather high for common soil. Although some of this could be attributable to OM, CEC is calculated on measurements of the base cations found by testing. Recent applications of calcitic or dolomitic lime, or Potassium can skew values and inflate CEC.

    Potassium: 1393. 696ppm of K. Very high, although no toxicity levels are known, it can adversely affect the plant uptake of other nutrients. Maximum recommended sufficiency levels are 240.

    Phosphorous: P2O5, 2819. Converting to elemental P: 655. Sky high. Recommended sufficiency levels for Melich III is 27-54. Levels above 140 are detrimental resulting in micro-nutrient deficiencies and reduced mycorrhizal hyphae root interaction and increased disease pressure.

    If the above values have been skewed due to recent amending, the test results are tainted and cannot be reliably employed for soil adjustment.

  • 9 years ago

    Thanks as I had amended a week earlier. I will wait till mid winter and retest.

  • 9 years ago

    It takes about a year for the majority of a nutrient app to integrate and for the soil to re-balance. If the soil freezes, re-balancing practically stops during that period. Tilling (roto-tilling) can help mix the nutrients and soil and improve speed of re-balancing.

    Good luck to you.

  • 9 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I do not advocate tilling. Soil nutrients will distribute on their own, given rain, gravity, worms, plant roots and time. Tilling destroys soil structure and makes it very hard for beneficial soil organisms to function properly. It's best not to do it at all, whenever possible.