Burpee Garden Helpers Electronic Soil Tester
chaparralgirl
8 years ago
last modified: 8 years ago
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Soil tester meter
Comments (4)I googled 'soil ph npk test meter' and found the one in the link below for $42 (but no photo). So they do exist. I've never heard of them before, so I don't know how well they work. For the price, and if it really does work, it seems like a good deal. Keep a good grip on the receipt. If you have a separate source of N, P & K, you might try testing them separately. In the link below, the description says "The 4-in-1 Electronic Meter ( picture not shown) features 3 probes that allow you to measure soil pH, soil moisture, light intensity, and total combined N-P-K (soil fertility)". TOTAL COMBINED NPK? Does that mean that if the K reads 20, and there's no N & P, that it still indicates that all is well??? As cynical and suspicious as I am, I would get the brand and the website, and contact them for some specifics. Sue Here is a link that might be useful: 4-in-1 electronic soil meter...See MoreSoil Test - do I believe it?
Comments (5)Your pH depends a lot on where you are located and the type of parent material in your soil. Wetter areas normally have higher pH, soils high in lime also tend to have a higher pH. My soil runs 7.8 to 8.2 normally and the garden plants do fine. There are situations where a lower pH would probably help them do better, but a pH of 7.3 is nothing to be concerned about. You could send in a second soil test and see what the results are. You can pick up relatively inexpensive pH testing kits in garden stores, or even in the pool care section of a store. Lastly, to try to reference what to expect in your soil, go online to the NRCS website and find your soil survey, if it is completed, then find where you are located and your soil type. The soil survey data will tell you what the pH typically runs for your soil type, so you will know whether you should be reading closer to 7.3 or 5.5. It could be that the pH tester you have is inaccurate or, as jimster said, you got some alkaline material in the sample that was sent in so it wasn't representative of your soil....See MorePH soil tester
Comments (12)I use a Hanna hand held 'field' pH meter. They are around $100 dollars, and you have to purchase the controls. But I agree with Appleseed on state soil lab tests, they tell you much more; but to the others who have differing results, if you have a pH meter you can calibrate it wiithin minutes of your tests, and you can test different areas, and be your own quality control. In regards to the paper strips won't work if you have red clay soil, becuase is near impossible to read the color indicator strips, same for the capsule tests. If you have sandy soil or probably anything else but red clay it might work. I first tried the inexpensive metal probe testers from Home Depot, but they were never reliable....See MoreUltra Acidic soil?!
Comments (14)Thanks all for your suggestions! It has to be a malfuntioned meter. I took a sample over to the nursery and they did a quick litmus test and showed up green; so that solved the mystery of the episode. Actually I don't mind the soil being more acidic since I'm planting mostly acid heads like bamboo, camellias, etc. Although 0 pH is a bit much! lol. The layer beneath isn't as bad as the hard compacted clay above; my intention was to mix in organic materials gradually and let them decompose overtime. I'm also thinking of bringing in some worms to speed it up. I did that with the last patch of bed I worked on tho I didn't stay long enough to notice any result! It's going to take time for sure; meantime it gives me an excuse to play with worms! lol. I might also plant some "cover crops" to work the soil. I'm beginning to suspect I enjoy working the soil more than I enjoy planting lol....See Morechaparralgirl
8 years agogumby_ct
8 years agokimmq
8 years ago
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