checking ph.

[naughty62]

Almost any help would be great.Many new home owners are so tight the will not spring for a soil test. They are worried about extras and what color of drapes thier wife wants.We go in finish grade,establish a seed bed ,seed and apply some 10-10-10 with micros. 3-4#gran.Many time the soil we have to use for topsoil is from basement excavations,usually a little more clayand void of good topsoil.grass is established ,but ounce in awhile i have to go out go a make a unscheduled general fert. app to the property.This is a time tested method which most people would and will pick apart.I hate going back 1-2extra times but i have no choice in the matter. The grass establishs and does alright,but could be better .At the minimum I would like to aquire a good ph meter and hone my skills at home .This would take a little quess work fertilizer selection,caring for acid loving ornimentals and composting.scu,ibdu,liquid urea .So after painting that picture ,where can a guy get an afordable and reliable ph meter? Have at it.

[Laurel companies]

try kelway. exspensive but long lastingfairly accurate. cheapys sold in retail outlets work, but break easily.

[naughty62]

Sorry about the sloppy post ,any imformation should assist me with finding a ph meter and making better decision when it comes to fertiler formulation selection. next i need to learn how to edit my own posts.

[Ric]

Naught

If you are going to spring for a good pH meter you might as well get a multimeter that does electric conductivity and Total Dissolved Salts etc. I have a Hanna and can test water as well as soil. If you run into a lawn that just won't do anything it could be a water problem of too much salt or Bio-carb.

[timturf]

Well a good ph better can give you the soil ph, BUT how do you know how much sulfer or lime to apply?

If the result from a meter indicates lime, HOW do you know whick lime material to apply? CALICUITIC OR DOLOMITIC? spelling is off, sorry

[timturf]

AND, I WOULD ASSUME you need sulfur, if you are located in N IOWA

[CCLS]

Contact the Iowa State University Turf Department or your local extension office. I think all of the extension offices have soil bags that you can send your sample in. You can send in a soil sample which is more than likely going to give you more accurate results than a home test.

[pow]

Tim,
My kelway tells you how much lime is needed. It has a chart on the meter. Chances are for lawns in central VA you will not need sulfer. I have done countless tests and rarely do I find them at the 6.5 range. Mostly 5.5-6.0.

[timturf]

POW,
but not what type of lime!!!!!!!

Yes, ph of 5 to 6 very, very common in c va, unless somebody has been liming the h--- out of turf without doing a soil test!!!!

BUT, I suspect n iowa is a different story, proably ph greater than 7, maybe greater than 8, depending on how much they irrigate and the source

[CCLS]

In Iowa the PH can be drastically different from a lawn at one end of the block to the other. I would say that in general the PH is usually higher than average instead of lower.

[naughty62]

most of our lawns are nuetral to8.0,but we de get new homes thatare dug into hillside or they will spread any left over soil and call it good they are not going haul ingood topsoil.joe home owner also dumps any fert thats on sale all over his yard .Does not know to calibrate his auction sale spreader and will keep dosing it till he has a problem .Then the call and want to know why his yard is stunted or yellow with chlorosis.I carry two test bag and the instruction that come with them .also carry interpetion instruction .But if fill the sample sheet out corectly , it will come back with recommendation already interpreted.mail it early in week so it isnt setting in mail room over the week end .n,p,k, o.m. ph $10.

[timturf]

what lab you use? Do they give base saturations?

tim

[naughty62]

Isu ,soil test lab g-501 agronomy,ames iowa .turfgrass samples taken at 3inches ,trees and scrubs 12 inches ,woody oriemental root depth.no base saturation involved .there is other test test sample kits ,including tissue .most are ag. related. I havent look too far into it.Am I missing something ?Any hints , tips ,points,or imformation are more than welcome.

[timturf]

good test will show base saturation of elements