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Chesterfield, MO

Hey guys/gals..just got my soil test back from A&L. Please mention anything and everything that looks like could be improved and how you would go about doing it. I would like to take my pH down to about 6.7 if possible...I plant out in about 45 days. Patch is approximately 1150 sq. ft. Thanks!

Soil pH: 7.5
Phosphorus: 332 lbs/acre
Potassium: 514 lbs/acre
Calcium: 6130 lbs/acre
Magnesium: 1036 lbs/acre
Sulfur: 152 lbs/acre
Boron: 2.8 lbs/acre
Copper: 5.0 lbs/acre
Iron: 438 lbs/acre
Manganese: 198 lbs/acre
Zinc: 19.4 lbs/acre
Sodium: 206 lbs/acre
Organic Matter: 6.4% ENR 172
NO3-N: 106 lbs/acre

CEC: 17.1 meq/100g
Calculated Cation Saturation:
%K = 3.6%
%Ca = 70.8%
%Mg = 23.2%
%Na = 2.6%
K:Mag Ratio = 0.15

3/18/2004 6:40:09 PM

Montoursville, PA

With that situation reading organic matter of 6.4 and a PH of 7.5 I believe I would consider five 5 cu. ft. bales of Canadian Peat tilled and watered in real well.I would use two or three cupic yards of mushroom compost or very old manures this spring. Then add copious amounts of manures in the fall to reach beyond 10% OM. If you get six inches of manures and compost this fall and a cover crop planted your OM will really go up. This spring I would add three things: Organic fertilizer from Fertrell or equal 5-3-4, some mushroom compost or very ole manures, 10 lbs of Ironite, greensand or Fertrell's Azomite and ten pounds of corn meal. My following program would include a weekly foliar of fish, kelp and molasses plus the AGRO-K foliar pumpkin program if the budget will sit still for the best. That is just about how my best 710 was grown last summer in my first year of growing. It quit in August with lots of growing room or time remaining. The injury was grower error.
My OM is now up to 17.7. I started about where you are now.

Now four to six inches of manure and a cover crop will maintain it as long as I wish to keep it that high. I use no harsh synthetic fertilizer in my soil.

3/18/2004 7:51:41 PM

Chesterfield, MO

I forgot to mention this sample is down to a 12" depth. Thanks Doc...Tremor anything else?

3/18/2004 9:57:10 PM

Ctpumpkin@optonline.net

Steve

If the pH were any higher, I'd also use Sulfur. But Peat alone will help. And you do need the OM.

That Mg is higher than ideal. It cannot be lowered, but the Ca & K can come up which will effectively bring the Mg down in %BS. The K is already on the edge of low. The Calcium is low.

In the perfect world you would find a nearby source of really old (5-10 years) manure. You'd add 3-4" now & stockpile more for fall. Because it is so old, you wouldn't bring the K beyond the 5% goal. But future care must be exercised.

The Calcium can come up with Gyspum. It's hard to over-apply but can be done. I would add 200 lbs per 1000 to the already amended, tilled, & raked smooth patch. Then lightly moisten, wait an hour, then till & rake again to incorporate.

The Micros are all good except the Zinc. But adding rotten manures will help so I wouldn't sweat the Zn.

Adding more micros now wouldn't be a great idea since some of them (look at that Mn!) are already way up there. Let's not make a mess of things by overdoing them.

Steve

3/19/2004 8:35:25 AM

Montoursville, PA

This report is about where mine was after gardening for more than thirty years in the same soil except that my PH was a tad low. That was intentional because I always liked to grow potatoes. They like a lower PH. I followed my own advise given here last year. The fall test showed 17.6 humus and the PH down about four tenths. At that point I added one bag of lime and some gypsum to service the salts that went up just a little because of all the manures going into the patch.

Bottom line is that if I had never tested it likely would have made little difference. What made a difference was feeding the bacteria and keeping them fat and sassy making the elements ready for plant uptake. The reduction of synthetics that kill bacteria and other forms of living soil life will help me further.

3/19/2004 9:51:56 AM

Chesterfield, MO

I'm going to go out tonight and get five 5 cubic ft. bales of Canadien peat moss like doc suggested and the Gypsum. Are "micros" and "trace elements" the same thing? If so does that mean no Azomite? I appreciate the help..thanks

3/19/2004 6:52:53 PM

NEPA roller46@hotmail.com KB3QKV

I had the soil tested recently and the pH was 7.3 How can I lower it? Can I lower it quickly enough before planting this year?

3/27/2004 7:38:40 AM