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43 Comments
It's ironic how this summer was mild as far as not being all that hot but it was one of the driest summers I've seen, I was surprised, so this shows that heat isn't always the culprit for drying out a garden.
What about green compost/ground cover over winter?
This video is disappointing and almost misleading. You cheaped out on compost and instead of learning that lesson, you cheaped out on a soil test that tells you only the most obvious things and only in broad terms. Many counties have free professional soil testing (or do it for a nominal fee). Services like Grosmart will test NPK … and all those minor nutrients you dismissed plus organic matter so you can make fully informed decisions instead of shooting in the dark
Even if you correct NPK, deficiencies in those minor nutrients you dismissed can have a bad effect on you plants and you still don't know what those are. As for cost….you paid $20 for that test. Grosmart and others are $50 or so. The difference is so small that you'll make it up by amending correctly instead of just tossing on Trifecta and hoping for the best. In fact you likely spent more in additional Trifecta than that.
You had the opportunity to step up and show your community how soil in all its complexities works here and… didn't. But hey, you saved $30.
Luke, do you think testing the soil at the end of the season when the nutrients were taken up affects the results? Thanks for the video!! Ready today to plant my garlic!! Very nice seed garlic from you guys!!
would you test a raised bed soil too. It seems raised bed soil is more controllable
I go for full lab test each year since I want full data. Organic matter, CEC, base saturations, micronutrients besides the macros. Best $57 test and results I use to amend and work on improvements fall and spring!
We tested the soil kits. The pH was the closest, but a $200 pH meter was closer. Water quality matters. We used distilled water. We also sent part of the sample to a lab. The UH extension no longer does soil testing for homeowners. There was a significant difference between the soil kit and the lab. The other problem with the soil kit for the lay person, is that it does not tell them how to fix their soil. The soil test has many variables, temperature, time of day, time of year, and moisture levels. The lab test costs significantly more but gave us specific recommendations for our soil. It is also very true that soil testing is best done as a baseline for a new garden. People don't necessarily have to test if their plants are growing well How well your plants grow or don't grow is a good indicator of soil health. People also need to know that soil test normals depend on the lab and also the type of soil you have. Your pH result would have been perfectly fine for my soil series with an optimal pH 6.0.
Luke, your videos are always informative.
Thank you.
Might be the soil food web is off. With a microscope see what biology is in the soil. Most crops like a fungal to bacteria ratio close to 1:1. If biodiversity is low apply compost tea with fungal foods like fish hydrolysate and soluble kelp and use a bio-complete compost. If it works check the works of Dr. Elaine Ingham, for some insight into soil health.
I'm so glad I caught this video! I had held on to a test kit like this for years an eventually threw it out because I wasn't sure how to use it. I'll be purchasing another one to test. Thanks Luke!!!😊
I'm here to see how you can fix this in such a large scale. Please bring us along for this process!
I feel like pH isn't terribly as important as long as you're within the 6-6.8 range for most veggies. Given you are growing in soil with nutrients that need to breakdown, I feel like a soil pH of 6.5 is fine. I always thought pH of 5.3-6.0 is crucial when feeding with liquids and needing to make sure all of them are available. This would be specifically true in hydroponics.
Low N is somewhat ok if you haven't fertilized or from a previously non-organic farm. If only soluble N was ever used like Nitrates and Ammonium Sulfate or Urea, then it makes sense why the soil has no N because those either wash away or evaporate due to Nitrification. P is actually bad…because it is pretty immobile in the soil. So if you got 0…you got 0 or it's just lower than 2 inches down. Fish Bone Meal or a Fish Hydrolysate that's like 2-3-1 probs would be good as drip or my favorite single ingredient, Fish Bone Meal 4-17-0 😀
What we thinking?
FWIW I think drought has devastating effects on nitrogen. The nitrogen pump is gone it really sucks.
My soil tested 7.0 ph. But my tomatoes did great. I am going to buy a test kit for sure.
This is really helpful!! Thank you for sharing. That's a great kit!!!
Hmmm ….second attempt at answering this question … the lady in the middle …. Same lower face features
I gotta say thought these ladies look so classy!!! Beautiful beautiful!!!❤❤❤
I’m surprised the nitrogen was basically gone. Wasn’t that land a soybean farm before you bought it? I would’ve thought that nitrogen wouldn’t be a problem.
Nothing makes me happier than to support upstanding and honest folk. Thank you Luke. Bravo!!!
I need to do this.
Luke, One thing to try is after you let your soil/ water sample sit for the 5 min & before you add it to the testing vials, filter it through a coffee filter. That makes it easier to see the comparison in the vials. Also always use distilled water for best results. Thanks for the content you make! Hey, any luck with finding straw for your orchard trees?
When is SEED DAY? I look forward to it every year.
Ice Mountain has a PH of 8. Maybe try distilled.
I think you made a good point about the tests you ran, but for frequent checks, I wonder if the Electrical Conductivity (EC) meter could be a helpful first alert. I know a chemical test is the only way to get accurate nutrient ratios, but for an extreme case like 0 N and 0 P, the EC meter is just so much faster and more convenient. Even though the EC reading is general and doesn't name the nutrients, if it comes back near zero, it gives you an immediate, high-confidence warning clue that the soil is starved. That would let you quickly start supplementing before the deficiency symptoms in your plants get too severe.
I tested my soil last year and it showed alkaline and lacking potassium too. What should I add?? I use Trifecta plus and some crops are good but some stink.
Throw down some ammonium sulfate. Adds Nitrogen, Sulfur and acidifies the soil.
I bet some animal manure would help with nitrogen and the soil quality. As long as I can remember my dad has always thrown some chicken manure pellets on our vegetable garden…
We bought a house with 4 acres in Missouri. The land had been planted for over 50 years. They plant corn and drill in nitrogen one year. Next year they grow soybeans. The land is worn out. Mostly clay, no top soil.
Thanks for the demo, I think I'll give it a go
Plant a gardenway cover crop mix and fertilize with conventional phosphorus and calcium nitrate (if the calcium is low). The cover crop will tie up the nutrients and give it a chance to balance up over the winter. Be careful with manure based compost because of that high potassium…
Till and add organic dry amendments. I'm telling you don't worry about compost or woodchips. You need acieration and nutrients. Compost is more trouble than its worth imo. People romanticize it and it really is not needed.
Thanks for the video — it made testing the soil look easy and affordable.
My large garden was bad this year and it was the soil.
If you can, get some spent grain from a brewery. It is high in nitrogen and phosphorus.
I am astonished you could grow anything with that horrible soil! My wishes for a "repairable" winter/spring time.
Some clarification. The video and package says there's 40 test. But in reality there's only 10 test of each type. So really, you can only test your soil 10 times for each type of thing
so i went over to my store that i own and bought a soil test that i sell… sorry, couldn't resist
Get yourself some quail. Their poop is magical. I put it on the soil in the winter and stop around march, then work it in. The plants love it
I just watched your video about harvesting sunflowers…6 yes ago. My question…I harvested a giant sunflower head, and laid it on the floor in my greenhouse to dry. Today I started pulling the seeds off, and discovered there's no seed in the shells. What did I do wrong? The shells are a grayish stripe color. Is there a chance it wasn't pollinate? So disappointing.
Wow time to find an organic chicken farm and ask for their used bedding
Loved this. I’ve always wanted to see what I have. I’m happy you are carrying the tests!
I had no idea until last year that I should test my soil. Will my results were exactly like yours. I amended with bone meal, blood meal, cow manure compost and I think my garden did better but I have a long ways to go on my soil.
Shouldn’t be too hard on yourself, it’s your first season on that dirt. I’d bet that in the years to come the dirt, will become soil and you can begin to tweak it