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Post by heidihi on Mar 7, 2011 8:24:34 GMT -5
I am getting serious this year (ok not really "serious" serious  ) I used to be spoiled and had a friend who ran an analytical lab he would test my soil for free and then send me a list of what I needed to do to fix it for what I was growing each year well that freebe ran out sadly he moved on to another job and I can not afford to use the lab on my own so I was going to purchase a soil test kit Just wondering where and what type of test kit is the best to do this on my own ..or if they are any good at all? I tried to do a search and was unable to find this subject ..so if I just missed it please direct me We have wonderful soil going but every year I add a lot of compost manure lime and bone meal and really I need to know the quantities are making for a nicely rounded soil this year I am making a concentrated effort to a larger 3 sisters bed since last years turned out just wonderfully for a tiny starter bed I could not believe how much miniature blue corn I grew it is just stunning corn! and the pumpkins were to die for ..the beans came out "ok" but I think everything was so lush they recieved very little sun themselves so I have to work on that .. anyway since I am going all science on myself can you help me figure out what test kit is the best ..and I would like something solid that I can re-use as the one single kit I bought at the box store really sucked as far as being cheap crappy and you could not replace the tablets the whole kit was disposable and stupid I do not mind spending money on things that you can re-use I hate spending money on crap thank you in advance for anything you care to share! |
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Post by mnjrutherford on Mar 7, 2011 11:09:10 GMT -5
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Post by stratcat on Mar 7, 2011 12:50:38 GMT -5
I'd go with the lab for the accuracy.
For the nominal fee of the county Extension Office, I had my soil tested by the Michigan State University lab. The ph was high so I've added agricultural sulfur and other amendments. My gardens have been getting better.
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Post by spacecase0 on Mar 7, 2011 13:03:05 GMT -5
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Post by heidihi on Mar 7, 2011 21:04:57 GMT -5
it is $60-$80 per sample here that is expensive since I need to do several samples
I just can not afford it now
I will look at that book (I will try to borrow it at the library) ..I do like math but hate too much "work" in my garden ..I just love gardening and really truly
..I want my friend to go back to his lab!!!!! that would be the nicest thing ..
I NEVER HAD TO THINK!!!! I miss that feeling!
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Post by heidihi on Mar 7, 2011 21:06:56 GMT -5
ok this looks better than the ones at Home Crappo ..and I can afford it ..do you have to homeschool to buy from here? I teach my grandkids all kinds of gardening stuff but I do not think that counts! |
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Post by littleminnie on Mar 7, 2011 21:24:42 GMT -5
Jo, how do you get it free?
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Post by mnjrutherford on Mar 8, 2011 9:08:48 GMT -5
Nope, you don't have to be a homeschooler to purchase from CB. I would also say (I feel strongly about this so I hope you'll forgive me) that what you teach your babies about gardening will do them far more good than anything they learn at their Local Industrial Government Brainwashing Center (LIGBC).
Minnie, the county extension office in our state offer all "growers", regardless of size, basic testing for free. If you send me a PM, I'll send you a download of what the results look like so you can see what sort of data we get. I take samples from the areas I want tested, put them into a box they provide, fill out an information sheet, and leave the box(es) with the sheet at the extension office. Sometime later, how much later depends on the number of other folks getting tested at that point in time, I get a little card stating that the results are available to be viewed or downloaded from their website.
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Post by heidihi on Mar 8, 2011 11:49:36 GMT -5
it is ok if you say that as long as you know and please do not forgive me because I feel no shame  I am a pro union exbicurious supporter of public school system..I am also a very moderately agnostic liberal Obama supporter who does not mind paying federal income tax at all and wish pot were legal so we could pay taxes on that too LOLOLOL!!!! phew now that that is out in the air... I believe in freedom on all levels so know that I sent all my kids to public school and volunteered taught classes and really enjoyed myself during those years |
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Post by heidihi on Mar 8, 2011 11:52:28 GMT -5
I am going to send off for that test kit and give it a try ..I have to especially watch the pH around my fruit trees becaue where I live there is fall out from a disgusting event on the Puget Sound
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Post by mnjrutherford on Mar 8, 2011 15:58:03 GMT -5
EXTREMISTS ON BOTH SIDES OF THE GARDEN!  WILL THE CARROTS SURVIVE? HA! Of course they will!  I put my first child, now 30, through public school. I also spent a lot of time volunteering and helping out and yea, for the most part at least, it was great. Trouble with here and now is that the poor teachers are not allowed to "teach". They have to focus on filling out paperwork and reports, etc. etc. etc. The kids really interfere with that process but it's an inconvenience that must be. There used to be assistant teachers to actually deal with the children, but they've been axed with the budget. We have some awesome teachers here in North Carolina, it's the "management" and the politicians who have their heads so far into their own bowels they can nibble polyps. I'm not sure if they are unionized in our state. Things are so bad here that when I first started talking about homeschooling with them, they told me it would be the best thing I could do because the system is so bad and just getting worse with each passing year. So, YOU GO HEIDI! Teachers definitely deserve every scrap of respect they get. |
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Post by rachel on Mar 12, 2011 6:50:43 GMT -5
Hi all,
I get my soil test from Univ of Massachusetts.
Search "UMass soil test lab".
It cost only $9.00 (that was a few years ago) and was much more comprehensive than the one from my own state univ which cost $15.00 and only tested for lead. UMass tested for many heavy metals, and provided ph etc. Plus they were very accomodating when I called and asked questions to interpret the results.
ellen
ps- another refugee from IDig...
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Post by stratcat on Mar 12, 2011 14:04:49 GMT -5
Hi all, I get my soil test from Univ of Massachusetts. Search "UMass soil test lab". It cost only $9.00 (that was a few years ago) and was much more comprehensive than the one from my own state univ which cost $15.00 and only tested for lead. UMass tested for many heavy metals, and provided ph etc. Plus they were very accomodating when I called and asked questions to interpret the results. ellen ps- another refugee from IDig... Welcome to HG, Rachel. When I had my soil tested, it was a small charge of $12. The Extension Office recommends testing only every three or four years. I had a dump truck load of 12 cubic yards of sandy topsoil hauled in for my cottage garden and tested it. The native soil grows my plants fine, so I've never had it tested. john |
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WILL THE CARROTS SURVIVE?
I put my first child, now 30, through public school. I also spent a lot of time volunteering and helping out and yea, for the most part at least, it was great. 