soil testing

[hedgerow pete]

due to many rain drops this year i recon my allotment is very washed out, nutrient wise.

i have seen on fleabay the usual cheap soil test kits for the big three, but does anyone know what it costs to have a proper kit brought or are the cheap and nasty any good

or even depending on costs what does a lab charge for this service and does anyone recomend one

to check soil PH can i just buy some ph strips from the chemist, mix up soil with water and then test the liquid or is there a proper way of doing it

and how do you test for trace elements

or is it more economical to just go and buy a couple of boxes of magnesium salts etc from the shop just in case

 

[oliver90owner]

Well, I still have a soil testing kit from about thirty years ago and I would expect it still to be good enough.

Nitrogen will leach out, but potash and phosphate are usually not too much of a problem. Depends a lot on the humous content and soil type, so no predictions.

pH is a simple test. Lots of better(?) ways of checking pH, but a ball park figure is enough, as long as you know the range best suited to your plants. Species of 'weed' will give a good guide for most purposes.

You may know all this, but here goes:

It is likely that careful observation of seedlings will give clues as to any deficiencies and almost immediate correction can be made with foliar feeds with a fertiliser raked in for longer term feeding.

So my old kit has not been used for many a year, although it is a fall-back, should I need confirmation. Most kits should give a reasonable result for N, P, K and pH. Just don't get too paranoid about it unless growing some particular varieties of veg. Normal crop rotation is likely a good a way to go as any.

Little and often for nitrogen is better than a lot at once; this is the most important one to keep on top of, as excess will typically give too much soft growth and too little will result in poor plant progress.

Trace elements are another matter.

Sulphur is usually present in most inorganic fertilisers.

Slow release fertlisers are better in the long run, but NBG if there is an immediate problem to correct.

Hope some of that lot helps.

 

[hedgerow pete]

with all this rain i can fore see some leaching going on and was wondering what to do about it, it seemed best to start with a simple test to find out whats missing, before adding stuff i dont need

 

[enrico]

Just add manure to the top and let it leach IN!!!