Soil Testing for Amazing Results

Soil Testing – the first thing everyone should do to totally enjoy a healthy garden! A SOIL TEST is important! Soil testing is a valuable tool to manage the mineral nutrition of your soil. This test will help you obtain information on which you can base recommendations and decisions concerning the relative acidity of the soil (pH) and the level of numerous essential nutrients like phosphorus, potassium, calcium, magnesium, sodium, sulfur, manganese, copper, and zinc. These nutrients in the right amount are needed for healthy plant growth.

A comprehensive soil fertility and organic matter map for each yard or garden is desirable as a basis to adjust fertilizer, manure, and limestone or other nutrients use. Over or under treatment may reduce crop yield.

The best time to sample is when you can do a good job and take your time, when you can make visual judgments on dividing the yard or garden into uniform sampling areas, and during the times of the year for which soil tests are calibrated.

Ideally, the best time would be either after harvest and before fall fertilization or before spring fertilization.

Take a soil sample a few months before initiating any new landscaping—whether it be laying sod, starting a vegetable garden, putting in a flower bed, or planting perennials. This way, if the soil test report recommends lime, you will have enough time to apply it and have it adjust the soil pH before you plant. So get busy.

Sample established areas—lawns, trees, shrubbery, and other perennials—once every three or four years.

Use Clean Sampling Equipment

Use a soil-sampling probe, an auger, a spade or shovel.

Tools should be either stainless steel or chrome-plated. Do not use brass, bronze, or galvanized tools because they will contaminate samples with copper and/or zinc.
Mix soil cores for each sample in a clean, plastic bucket. If the bucket has been used to hold fertilizer or other chemicals, wash it thoroughly before using it for soil samples.
Each sample should represent only one soil type or area—for example, a lawn, vegetable garden or perennially landscaped area. For each unique area, take at least six to eight samples. Place all the samples for one unique area in a plastic bucket and mix thoroughly. Use the mixture in the bucket to fill a soil sample bag about two-thirds full. Look for the fill line on the bag.

* If one area of your yard seems healthy and another has bare or yellow areas, sample healthy and unhealthy areas separately even if both are lawn grasses or flower gardens, etc.

Sampling Depth

For lawns, sample to a depth of four inches, excluding any turf thatch.
For vegetable and flower gardens, sample to the depth that you plan to incorporate lime or fertilizer, usually four to six inches.
For shrubbery, remove any mulch or surface debris, then sample to a depth of four to six inches around the base of plants.
Avoid zones where lime or fertilizer has been recently applied.

Submitting Samples:

The North Carolina Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services Agronomic Division will analyze your soil samples.

Forms and boxes for samples are available from your county Cooperative Extension center. The phone number can be found under County Government in the blue section of your phone book.