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Did the mason jar test and can't seem to get results?

3 years ago

Did this 24+ hours ago from a spot in my backyard.

Looking online it was supposed to be 3 distrinctive layers of soil. For the life of me, I can only see for the most part 1 huge big layer. At the top i can see a very thin layer of what seems a different material. Can't discern if at the bottom there is another very fine different layer (if there is, it should be sand.)

If this is the case, does this mean my soil is almost pure silt?

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Comments (9)

morpheuspa (6B/7A, E. PA)
3 years ago
Try it again, but watch it in action this time for a bit. Check in at 3 minutes to see the layer--that's sand.

Look at 3 hours. That's silt.

Then look at 3 days. That's totally-settled clay (which you really don't seem to have much of).

I already have my suspicions, but a re-do is in order. A nearly-pure this-or-that soil isn't terribly unusual, anyway. Mine is about 3 grains of sand, 99% silt, and a whisper of clay.
dchall_san_antonio
3 years ago
Looks like a result to me. Looks like 3 grains of sand, 99% silt, and a cloud of clay particles suspended in the water above the silt layer.
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ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
3 years ago
why are you doing this???

you may already have your answer .. how precise does the result need to be .???

when you look at these ... you arent going to find a precise place in the triangle.. you are simply going to be off in the direction of one corner or another ... which should give you all the info you need ....

https://duckduckgo.com/?t=ffsb&q=soil+triangle&iax=images&ia=images

more info.. might get you more suggestions ...

if you are going to do a redo.. get another jar.. and leave this one be for a month or two .... you might be surprised how much more it will settle .... will you learn anything more.. who knows ....

ken
HU-457659181
Original Author
3 years ago
im doing this in order to know more or less what type of soil i have. I am undergoing landscaping and choosing plants and want to know what I have in place. In a previous thread, someone had recommended this test to have a ball park. It's not to have a precise measure, but in this case - if correct - the precision is irrelevant because it seems most is silt.

Morpheus, what is your suspicion? Hmm interesting you say yours is about 3 grains of sand and 99% silt. I understand you are from CentralPA or something like that? That's where I am located so I think that might have something to do with it! I'll redo it once more in a different jar and different location from yard as well.
morpheuspa (6B/7A, E. PA)
3 years ago
My suspicion is the same as DCHall. You have a soil that's identical to mine; 3 grains of sand, 99% silt, and just enough clay to cloud the water a wee bit. I'm actually in eastern PA, but close enough. We both seem to have a soil best described as "Silt."

They're nice soils. They hold water well, have a fairly high EC, but not so high you have to fight with them, and grow pretty much anything you throw at them once they're balanced correctly.

As to why we do this, "the fun of it all" is quite enough answer for me.
HU-457659181
Original Author
3 years ago
thanks Morpheus. I am sending a soil sample to a lab so I can have things balanced correctly then. So I guess my estimate a few weeks back when I said my soil was/felt clayish was completely wrong I guess. Yes it gets super compact, and in the summer it cracks pretty badly to the point of being hydrophobic a bit.
morpheuspa (6B/7A, E. PA)
3 years ago
If it's Logan Labs, I can read that. UMass, I can read that. Others...er, well... :-)
HU-457659181 thanked morpheuspa (6B/7A, E. PA)
dchall_san_antonio
3 years ago
So I guess my estimate a few weeks back when I said my soil was/felt clayish was completely wrong I guess. Yes it gets super compact, and in the summer it cracks pretty badly to the point of being hydrophobic a bit.

We see this a lot. Most people who complain here about clay soil do the jar test and find out they have almost no clay.

I'm going to predict that you have a salt imbalance and in particular too much magnesium.
HU-457659181
Original Author
3 years ago
Yes its Logan Labs! Ill try to post it once i get it back!

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