I put mine on a nail in the shed. I bought one from Harbor freight, like a lot of Harbor Freight products if is not top quality. The only part of the meter that seems to work somewhat reliable is the light meter. It will tell me if the sun is shinning.

Larry

Susan - if you're addressing me, I don't use one of those. I thought about one, but I needed to know a lot more than that so I purchased one of those home test kits from a box store. It's the one with 4 tubes and little pellets. We took soil samples from several places in the general area of two of our garden spots. We probably took a good spadesized scoop of dirt from each place (maybe 8" deep) and mixed it all together. Then according to the directions, mixed that dirt with the water and tablet. They're aren't "professional" results but scientific enough for me.

I would think that the value of the dirt at any given depth would be subjective, depending on what, if anything, the "keeper" had or had not done to the dirt. Of course, the deeper you go the more you'll know about your "base". Makes sense? Maybe I'm rambling! LOL!

Larry, I agree with you about HF. They do have some good stuff....but this is one of those places that most of the time, you get what you pay for. Except for Chandra's greenhouse....I want one of those so bad I can almost taste it!!!

Paula

I was convinced it was you that I saw that said you used a pH meter, but guess not, darn it! Maybe it was you, Larry?

The meter I got measures moisture and pH. I tested a few areas yesterday, and I am not sure how accurate it is. One of the spots I measured was about 5.0 pH, and then I stuck it in the dirt just about a foot away from that one, and it measured about 5.8. That close together it makes me wonder about the accuracy.

I was measuring under the pine tree because I wanted to see if I needed to add some lime since pines tend to create an acid environment in the soil. I stuck the meter in about 6" deep. I measure the moisture, too, and it was as high on the "moist" end as it could get. I was concerned in this drought, whether the watering I had done was actually soaking in, or just running off. It was definitely soaking in!

The average pH in my yard in various places was about 6.0. Is that about right or do you guys think I need to add anything.

Susan

Susan,

I had my soil tested last year and the PH was 6.2 to 6.5 or 6.7, which seemed to be fine. (state sample)

I have not used my meter this year, I may get it out to just play with it but I have very little faith in it. I think those meters fall in the same category as the "weather Rock" you use to see at the Arts and Crafts shows. Which would read something like, If rock is wet on top it is raining, if it is wet on bottom there is a flood,if rock is swinging the wind is blowing, If rock is gone you have had a tornado.

I like a soil tests, it is sort of like a GPS, it lets you know where you are at the time, but you still have to watch your plants and make judgement calls based on what you observe.

My meter will change very little when I place in milk or vinegar. It seems to be a little more accurate if I keep the probes cleaned with fine steel wool, but still not enough to rely on.

Larry

I agree with Larry. I bought one suggested by a large grower I trust very well. And it was more expensive than the ones you see at most stores and in most catalogs. I sent tests off to 2 labs last year. I tested the samples with the meter and compared. On one sample it was really close and the other a ways off. I will say the readings between the labs varied also. But not to the extent that the meter did. I did some experimenting. Just the moistness of the soil makes a difference in what it reads. I was hoping I could use it during the season to get a general idea of where my PH was and if I needed to add a little more sulfur. I have went back to just watching the plants and like Larry making adjustments on what I observe. Jay