need help comparing two soil test results

9 years ago

I just got my 2nd soil test results back from Rutgers. This was the first followup test since my original test two years ago when my soil was first delivered. I've made several ammendments in the past two years so variations were anticipated.

The first item of interest was that my pH went from a 6.5 to 7.23 making it slightly alkaline.

In the area of macronutrients the items that increased (parts per acre) were Phosporous (from 672 to 730), Calcium (from 4051 to 6445) and Magnesium (from 747 to 968). The only item that decreased was Potassium (from 2010 to 1613). All macronutrients are still at ABOVE OPTIMUM LEVELS.

In the area of micronutrients the items of interest that increased (parts per million - rounded) were Zinc (from 22 to 31) and Copper (from 3 to 13). Those that decreased were Manganese (from 74 to 70) and Iron (from 334 to 295).

I also had the soluble salt test done this time to get an idea of how good (or bad) the addition of composted manure to my beds was this spring. Even though I have no baseline to compare it against, I don't know how to interpret the results. Any advice would be appreciated.

The thing that really stuck out in the pH results section was that they recommended to NOT ADD ANY COMPOST to the soil. Why??? How can any amount of vegetative compost (leaves, kitchen scraps, coffee grinds) make my soil any more alkaline? Please advise because my plan was to top dress more vegetative compost monthly.

Do any of the large changes in measurements (like Calcium and Copper) sound alarming to anyone? If so, why?

Below are pics of the report as well as a view of what my garden looks like today. It certainly "seems" to be well balanced as everything is growing nicely in the beds (with the exception of some cukes I recently pulled due to Angular Leaf).

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Comments (9)

poaky1
9 years ago
I will give you my opinion about what i can. You may have overdone the Lime. Lime if you did use some besides adding calcium increases PH, making it alkaline. Peat moss is supposed to make it more acidic. It is controversial to use peat moss, it is supposed to be a non-renewable resource. But you see stacks of the stuff at home and garden centers, and the stuff from Canada is mentioned to be plentiful. So I would add a bit of Peat moss, mix in a bit in the soil. If it isn't mixed in it will make a crust on the top of soil and repel rain or hose water. Sulfer will help lower PH also. That is what i would do. I am no expert, though. But I know my info to be true, from what I have read.
njitgrad
Original Author
9 years ago
I never directly added any lime. The only things I have added in the past two years are varying quantities of self-made vegetative compost, Valfei's Garden Compost (made of composted sea-weed residue, shrimps and lobsters residue), worm castings, and composted cow manure. I also added a little vermiculite this year just to help a little bit with compaction.
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You can do either. If you have a good amount of rain coming this week, I would lime first. Most soil lab fertilizer recommendations aren't very good. They are very general, the computer just spits them out. When you fertilize use enough to apply 1 lb of nitrogen per 1000 square feet. For most of your apps half quick release, half slow release is recommended (you can use Milorganite as a slow release if you want). If you are overseeding I would apply half an app of starter at seeding, the other half after you mow the new grass 2 or 3 times. So let's say you overseed on Sept. 1. Apply half an app of starter at seeding time and the other half will be in about a month or so. Then in late October a full app, you can use the starter if you want or regular 50:50 fertilizer. Then in late November/early December when topgrowth has stopped, but the ground isn't frozen a full app of all quick release nitrogen (urea, ammonium sulfate, ammonium nitrate). Make sure to always water in synthetic fertilizers to avoid burn.
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Based on backyard Ca and pH, maybe you did mix 2 up since you say you limed front yard and what you posted makes it look like back yard was limed. DO NOT put lime down again. The 6.3 is great and the 7 pushing high. Doing the lime was a mistake. If they aren't backwards, then liming was good because pH 6.3. If you did get the 2 mixed, it makes sense that P is getting locked up and Ca is higher. Me personally, I'd have to retest again now.
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This isn't that bad, and it's not that acidic. It could certainly use improvement, but all things considered, it's not awful or anything. Sample Depth 6: Four is recommended for lawns, but I'll adjust the numbers appropriately. ME 7.5: Probably mixed sand and silt. It's a good soil mix that holds a fair level of resources and maintains itself tolerably well. pH 5.9: A little low, but nothing severe. We'll correct this under calcium and potassium below. OM 5.4: In the Good range. Certainly mulch mow and mow your fall leaves, and consider feeding organically if you like. But this is not an emergency and no quick action is required. Sulfur 15: A nice answer with plenty of margin for sulfate-based additions. Phosphorus 505 (337 adjusted): Perfect! No phosphorus is required or desired, and this is sufficient for any purpose for years. You don't specifically need to avoid phosphorus sources, but I wouldn't intentionally add any if you can avoid it. So no starter fertilizer. Calcium 61.2%: Technically OK but I'd like to adjust this a little bit. For that, we use Encap, Mag-I-Cal, or Pennington Fast Lime. Other cheap limes will add magnesium you don't want (and shouldn't use), work very slowly, and require far more mass for the same adjustment. I adjusted the soil shortage down to 137 PPA. Recommendations below. Magnesium 12.4%: Nose-on perfect. No magnesium is required or desired. Potassium 1.9%: Somewhat low. To adjust, we use potassium sulfate (sulfate of potash), which can be ordered from most landscape places or garden stores. Big box stores tend not to carry this, although you can get it online as a last resort. Recommendations below. Minor Elements: Fine, except for boron. I do mention iron below as well. Boron 0.22: Deficient. 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. Iron 155: Not a problem, but your rising pH is likely to cause some paling out of the lawn. Whenever you like, apply Milorganite at bag rate to darken the lawn and very slowly raise the soil iron. Recommendations: September 15: Apply 5 pounds of Encap, Mag-I-Cal, or Pennington Fast Lime per thousand square feet. October 1: Apply 4 tablespoons (4 Tbsp; not a misprint!) of 20 Mule Team Borax per thousand square feet in Milorganite carrier. October 15: Apply 3 pounds per thousand square feet of potassium sulfate. April 1, 2016: Apply 4 pounds of Encap, Mag-I-Cal, or Pennington Fast Lime per thousand square feet. April 15, 2015: Apply 3 pounds per thousand square feet of potassium sulfate.
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Overall, this isn't a bad test at all. There are some things that require fixing, some that should be adjusted, and many that are just fine. It's good you used the starter on her lawn; she needed it! I'll account for the usage in my calculations and recommendations, assuming you went at bag rate (1 pound of P2O5 equivalent). Sample Depth 3: Four is the normal sampling depth, but that's no big deal. I'll adjust your answers to match a 4" horizon. Exchange Capacity 7.5: Silty sand, probably. The soil holds a tolerable level of resources and testing every other year will be sufficient to make sure nothing's going awry once it's adjusted. pH 6.4: Right where it should be, which is because most of the resources that generate pH are right where they should be. I'll want to adjust a few of them a little bit, but will do so in a relatively pH neutral manner. Organic Matter 4.8%: Nicely in the Good range. Certainly mulch mow, mow all fall leaves, and feed organically if you want, but this is not an emergency. The EC of the soil is high enough that there's no reason to specifically work on organic matter to raise the EC. Sulfur 11: A nice answer, with plenty of margin for adding sulfate-based chemistry to adjust things. I don't need much margin. Phosphorus 77 (103 adjusted): Low, and definitely impacting lawn quality. Target here will be 200. To adjust this, we use starter fertilizer, and my recommendations are below. Calcium 64.6%: Right in optimal range, although with a lower EC soil I'd like to adjust this a tiny bit (that 50 pound [67 pound adjusted] shortage is minor, but...) For this, we use gypsum, which is available at many big box stores, landscape shops, and garden stores. Get the pelletized, it's much easier to handle, if available (and it usually is). My goal here is to nudge the calcium levels closer to 70%. Magnesium 15.4%: Perfect. No magnesium is required or desired. Potassium 5.0%: Perfect (the previous test was wrong on this, I think). No potassium is required or desired, and this is absolutely optimal. Sodium 1.0%: Perfect. Sodium does nothing for a lawn, so very low levels are desirable. The gypsum might reduce this a tiny bit and, if so, great. If not, no problem. Minor Elements: Boron is deficient. The rest are fine, although if you wish to use Milorganite (high iron), that would probably improve the lawn color a little bit over time. Boron <0.2: Deficient. 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 12.5 tablespoons of 20 Mule Team Borax. Recommendations: Seeding Time: Starter fertilizer at bag rate (you already did this). October 15: Starter fertilizer at bag rate. November 1: Apply 5 tablespoons (not a misprint) of 20 Mule Team Borax per thousand square feet. April 1, 2016: Apply 5 to 10 pounds of gypsum per thousand square feet (I'd prefer 7, actually, but anything in that range is just fine). Memorial Day 2016: Starter fertilizer at bag rate. Labor Day 2016: Starter fertilizer at bag rate.
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Kimmsr
9 years ago
A soil pH of 7.23, while a bit above the 6.2 to 6.8, is not much of a concern and I have seen my soil go from 5.7 pH to 7.2 just by getting the amount of organic matter up to the optimum of 6 to 8 percent. Yours, at 15, is a bit high. Your macro nutrients, while above optimum, appear to be in balance and that need not be a concern.
I'd not add more compost, or other organic matter, for a while.
nil13
9 years ago
Seaweed compost has been shown to raise pH. Other composts have a pH that usually falls between 6-8 depending on composition.
njitgrad
Original Author
9 years ago
So...when would you expect it would be okay to add more vegetative compost? I built a fancy three-bin system last year only to find out that the compost I have in it now (ready to go) is not necessary. How long can compost sit around?
nil13
9 years ago
I bet the rest of your landscape would appreciate some compost. It should be pretty easy to make compost disappear.
njitgrad
Original Author
9 years ago
Should I consider sprinkling Espoma Acidifier to the top of my beds? Over time would this lower my pH with each watering of the garden? Or should I not bother getting the pH down until the end of the growing season?
Kimmsr
9 years ago
The pH of that soil is fine for what you are growing so adding anything to change that pH is not necessary. You can use these simple soil tests,
1) Soil test for organic matter. From that soil sample put enough of the rest to make a 4 inch level in a clear 1 quart jar, with a tight fitting lid. Fill that jar with water and replace the lid, tightly. Shake the jar vigorously and then let it stand for 24 hours. Your soil will settle out according to soil particle size and weight. For example, a good loam will have about 1-3/4 inch (about 45%) of sand on the bottom. about 1 inch (about 25%) of silt next, about 1 inch (25%) of clay above that, and about 1/4 inch (about 5%) of organic matter on the top.

2) Drainage. Dig a hole 1 foot square and 1 foot deep and fill that with water. After that water drains away refill the hole with more water and time how long it takes that to drain away. Anything less than 2 hours and your soil drainsÃ¢ÂÂ too quickly and needs more organic matter to slow that drainage down. Anything over 6 hours and the soil drains too slowly and needs lots of organic matter to speed it up.

3) Tilth. Take a handful of your slightly damp soil and squeeze it tightly. When the pressure is released the soil should hold together in that clump, but when poked with a finger that clump should fall apart.

4) Smell. What does your soil smell like? A pleasant, rich earthy odor? Putrid, offensive, repugnant odor? The more organic matter in your soil the more active the soil bacteria will be and the nicer your soil will smell.

5) Life. How many earthworms per shovel full were there? 5 or more indicates a pretty healthy soil. Fewer than 5, according to the Natural Resources Conservation Service, indicates a soil that is not healthy.

with the Rutgers to look at the soil in depth and they can help guide you in making decisions about what to do with the soil.
I have grown vegetables in the soil I have here with the soil pH in the 7.2 range for many years now with few problems, a few insect pests but no plant disease.
toxcrusadr
9 years ago
From the looks of your pics your garden is growing just fine, so if it ain't broke, no need to fix it. :-]

I had trouble reading your initial post because for some reason my browser extended all your text to the right underneath the ads and past them all the way out to the parking lot. ?!? But as far as micronutrients, as long as things like Cu and Fe are within reasonable limits, occasional maintenance additions of compost will keep them there.

Happy gardening!

need help comparing two soil test results

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poaky1

njitgrad
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need help comparing two soil test results

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poaky1

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nil13

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nil13

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