I forgot to mention that turnaround time once they receive your sample is only 1-2 days, much faster than anywhere else I've looked! If you want to test your soil the link is bit.ly/3XVwOM4 and remember to use the code "EPICGARDENING" for 10% off!
Enjoyed the methodical way you went about making your collections and the concise and interesting analysis of the results. Thanks again for an informative presentation!
It's really smart to test your soil, and the ideal time in most of the U.S. is early spring. For those on a tight budget, you can work through your county extension office to get a soil test and report. Every state has at least one land-grant university, that will process your soil test and email you the report. In Virginia it is Virginia Tech University. In California, it's the University of California, Davis. You can contact the county extension office or the master gardeners in your area to get a soil test kit. Each kit (in Virginia) costs $10 to process and turnaround is prompt. You can send in multiple kits for different zones in your yard or garden. They will also suggest possible remedies if you have a soil deficiency. You can also ask about specific crops, flowers, herbs, etc. and soil amendments for their optimal growth.
I just ordered and had to call to get some help with the website. When putting in your zipcode...make sure the +4 ISN"T included. It won't process with the plus four on their. John was an excellent customer service man and I'm excited to have this done.
Excellent video. Very informative without a lot of fluff. It’s interesting the calcium seems a bit low in most beds. Especially since I’m sure you use your chicken litter and such as mulch or in your compost. Everything looks pretty good.
My problem with taking samples from all across the garden is that you're only going to get the EXTREMES. One bed is different from another, you added different stuff at different times & grew different stuff, so 1 bed may be short on Magnesium, whereas another has a surplus, so you end up with an average. Instead, you'll only know the EXTREMELY DEFFICIENT chemicals. Not very useful. You also don't know your organisms.
The first test was getting a broad spectrum overall picture of that garden. Tests 2-4 were highly specific to individual beds, I agree this isn't IDEAL but it does still have value.
With that high of a CEC, I'm guessing you have a fair amount of clay. It'd be fun for your viewers to do a soil texture test in a ball jar. It will also make it harder to drop your pH. Do you have any rainwater collection systems? One thing worth considering would be to essentially flood your beds a couple times a year with rainwater to leach some of the excess nutrients out. Up here in Western Washington, we have the opposite problem with 55" of rain leaching nutrients out of low CEC soils. My guess, with that high of a CEC, is that you can also cut your fertilizer applications back.
I for sure have clay soil and I should totally do a ball jar test! I was thinking this too, at the point when sampled we had only maybe 2-3 inches of rain since last April. Just recently I got 5 inches of rain over about a week which has me thinking It would be interesting to test again after that....
Yeah the P values are quite nuts, I know I've read about some plants that are particularly effective at pulling up P but other than that not much more I could do but avoid adding it.
@@jacquesinthegarden I feel you. That's the hard thing with adding lots of compost. Is that where all the P and K came from or were you just using a complete fertilizer every time? Also, interested whether you have read much on how that high P value can affect soil nutrient balances and whether or not you have seen Ca or micro tie up in those beds. P.s. love your stuff
Well, my dad never failed in his garden. Vinegar and baking soda he used to figure out , and always he got awesome vegetables. Unfortunately I wasn't into gardening at the point . But . Healthy soil. Happy Gardener!
I just got a soil test kit in the mail today but after watching this I bought this one too to test another area. 😊Thanks for the recommendation and discount code! Love your videos and always looking forward to the next!
So Cal gardeners for the most part we need to add gypsum to our soil. It will increase the Ca, reduce the Na, help improve heavy adobe soils. It used to be fairly inexpensive to buy. Thanks for the test results and the 10% off. Cheers.
Interestingly I started off by adding gypsum to my soil but then stopped once I ran out. At the time I never really had a way to gauge it, still not sure if I will go with more gypsum but it makes sense.
Yes gypsum should benefit this soil, the Potassium levels are very high and high K levels can make it harder for the plants to get calcium as the two nutrients are competitive in a sense. However, you probably have good biology and good biology can offset the high K low Ca to a degree. Calcium will kick K off the soil colloid having a stronger +2 vs +1 charge. With enough rain/watering/time/plant uptake you will get a better ratio between calcium and potassium. Maybe just do some research on K to Ca ratio to see if you can be benefited..
I'd be curious to see how your soil results from RX compare to the MySoil analysis? I've found the results of the MySoil test to better reflect plant response. Plus, they test for available nitrogen and plant-available nutrients. Could make for an interesting comparison video.
I loved all the info you got from this test. It seemed so comprehensive and helpful. However, I laughed out loud in shock because I don't remember ever seeing you without your hat! Great video on an important topic.
This is so interesting! I'm starting my first garden this coming year, so I think I'll bookmark this video for when fall comes around to see how to amend my soil for the coming year. I love that it's so interactive with easy to read graphs, thank you!
I think the single biggest issue we face in So Cal is excess Na. I have repeatedly found high base saturation measured for this element when results from the lab came back. Na measuring high( when soil only needs a trace) plays havoc with many crops. From leaf margin burn, to wilting and dieback( or death) on many trees, Sodium is a killer. Four base elements( K, Mg, CA, Na) affect pH. Just knowing pH tells the gardener nothing about the ratios of these three major , , and one trace nutrient.
Do you live near the coast where you might have saltwater intrusion issues? Or was the high sodium an issue that you were able to fix? Because if it's a widespread issue, that sounds more like a systemic issue like seawater intrusion that really can't be fixed unless there's massive government investment into rainwater capturing systems to refill groundwater and displace the salt water from the water table.
@@ellenkuang8853 It's in the water from MWD( from Nor California and the Colorado river). So it is a widespread problem. The water quality report measures Na higher than Ca, Mg, and K. CaSO4 and CaCO3 can help mitigate and flush the Na to lower soil profiles( with adequate irrigation) where it does less damage. Thankfully, we've had 8+ inches of rainfall since New Year's ! Salt also concentrates in compost, and manures.
Excess salts of all kinds are for sure a huge issue in our region due to the lack of rain. I have been running a pre filter on my irrigation for a year now which should help bring down some of the dissolved solids. Also after this big rain storm we just had I might run another set of tests just out of interest to see if its any different now.
@@jacquesinthegarden Did your testing measure Na base saturation? I've seen anywhere from 3- 7%. It's a killer when K measures lower. Plants will substitute Na for K when Na is hjgher.. . Seen citrus trees wilt when root zone was thoroughly watered. This, usually during warm weather. K measured low/ Na higher. Potash sulfate (KSO4) to the rescue.
pH is a trailing indicator - tis a reaction, not a cause. pH changes per management practice like liming and adding other rock powders. when you say that you are not worried about aphids, that is also management practice - too much nitrogen in the leaves that had not converted to proteins. they shouldn't be there at all...blessings
Yes this is a great point, they tend to be pretty backed up so if you don't need quick results that is a great option. Obviously this varies from county to county.
the soil test kit looks amazingly easy to do. I wish there's a same company here in the Philippines though. Seeing Jacques without the Hermit Hat makes him look like a different person, I'm so not used to it.hahaha
I've used this company a few times. We have free compost at the state fairgrounds nearby. I had some bad crops after using the compost one spring. I did the same test as you and a pesticide test. Luckly it was just really high organic matter, no chemicals. So now I let the compost age a few weeks to a month before using it. Tests were worth it.
They are usually sold as "Soil Acidifiers" at garden centers, its the same as what they would sell for turning hydrageas blue or treating soil for blueberries if you have that handy already. When you check the ingredients it should say Sulfur or elemental Sulfur sometimes with Gypsum. Most people avoid ones with Aluminum Sulfate as it can add Aluminum to your soil so a quick ingredient check doesn't hurt. I have used Espoma's Soil Acidifier before for my blueberries and will likely use that to treat my soil.
Perfect timing Jacques. I really need to this since last week they were doing ground work in the whole neighborhood. Apparently one of the cable box in our yard is leaking some kind of liquid... which is ironic since we don't have or watch cable. Happy gardening Jacques and everyone 2023.🥰
@@jacquesinthegarden No kidding, but thank goodness it’s nowhere near are raised beds. Apparently they are not done yet. They’re going to pay us a visit next week. Hopefully they’re going to remove that leaking transformer or cable box that’s leaking. Take care my master gardener mentor 🙏
Jacques makes a good point. If you test the soil in the fall after you finish growing vegetables, etc. The results will allow the garden time (over the winter and early spring) for the recommended amendments to incorporate into the soil and be ready to plant in spring.
Do you have any recommendations for disease testing companies? i feel the mulch i purchased last year from box store labeled organic was littered with issues... wilt and blight but not 100℅ sure.
@@GardenScraps which do you recommend for commercial? I have tried copper but was going to rootshield but open to suggestions. Yes the heirloom was all i was growing and what a disaster
@@GardenScraps i have permithrin concentrate from AG i havent used. but ill chefk into the others. ya the copper just killed my plant. did absolutely nothing. i found baking soda worked for early blight but keeping it at bay only. thank you... truly appreciate the pointers
Never listen listen to micro-nutrient recommendations, coz sometimes they go crazy and tell you to put everything. Acidifying your soil coz you have 7.7 is crazy (also it would require years and tons of those gypsum things or whatever...) No one would do that. I have 8.0-8.2 and my veggies are fine... Also, organic matter has a pH of 6.5. So just keep mulching... Usually anything from 5.5 to 7.8 is considered fine for most veggies. Especially if you have a living soil. Coz all these recommendations are based on the now obsolete NPK model, thinking that a plant takes nutrients from the soil and so you need to give it some. This is total rubbish. Most plants enrich the soil, and some heavy feeder veggies will indeed take some nutrients. Or veggies where you harvest everything, like radishes. But corn or any cereal would have been pretty neutral in intake if you leave the stalk on site, so the soil can eat it. Stuff like onions, garlic, fava beans, beans and peas don't need fertilizer and are pretty neutral too. As far as heavy feeders like squashes and cabbage are concerned, well, compost and mulch is all you need. You can put manure instead of compost of course, play with cover crops too, but that's about it. It is EXTREMELY RARE that a backyard garden actually has a specific nutrient deficiency... Large scale farming destroyed by tilling, naked soil and pesticides and that are down to 1 or 2 % organic matter ? Yeah they can use some, these are mainly the clients those testing labs have. Also, compost isn't really stable organic matter. You wanna increase the OM of your soil, you need mulch, lots of it. With mulch, mushroom and worms eat it, combining it with the mineral phase of the soil (the all important clay-humus complex). With mature compost, there's not much to eat for your soil life, so it feeds mostly your plants, and doesn't create long term OM increase. I know some people still believe the best way to increase OM is to fork in some compost but that's not true, it's not that easy. You need little workers to do the job properly, and worms are the way to go.
This is an interesting take and I agree that pH is often one of the hardest things to actually modulate so it may not be worth the effort. Also, agree on the idea that NPK isn't the full picture, I think extreme deficiencies are good to know and like I discovered extreme highs. I am a huge proponent of mulch and specifically straw as like you said it brings in worms like crazy.
@sandrasummerlin4179 hmm not sure it's the lack of winter so much as the hot summers that would make it fussy. Rhubarb likes temps below 65F and hotter than that will potentially wilt and kill them. They can be perennial in colder climates because they can shrug off the cold and just overwinter in the crown and grow back in spring assuming they saved enough food in the crowns during the season (like bears haha). You would skip needing to worry about the overwintering, you'd just need to figure out keeping them cool and watered without overwatering so probably best grown as an annual between August and May in your climate
I tend to not apply that much fertilizer but for now I am going to wait for a full growing season and see where the values land before investing too much into solving it. I may consider cycling through some really densely planted cover crop of plants that do well at pulling up P and K.
Hi, thanks for your videos! Here in California since we don’t have hard frosts I had planted potatoes a couple weeks back. Temperature is in the 50F range. The sprouts came up but seem to be turning black and dying off. Any thoughts on what could be causing it?
It is possible that it was cold enough at night that the young small sprouts just couldn't handle the cold. Otherwise I am not entirely sure what would cause them to pop up and then die back like that.
Zinc indeed was quite high, ideally I wouldn't want to see it above 30 or 50 at most. A lot of it has to do with my clay soil which is really good at holding onto Zinc. It is hard to tell from a test like this whether that Zinc is truly available to plants at all times or bound up in iron minerals so I am not TOO worried about it.
You could use jadam liquid fertilizer to bring down the ph of your soil. It's a liquid bacterial fermentation that both breaks down the leafy green weeds and grasses and blooms organic matter decomposers.
Most state colleges with an ag department will do soil tests for you if you send in the soil samples. I am sure the fees will vary by locality. The last test I did cost $140 and tested all nutrients, heavy metals, sulfates, soluble salts, total carbon and total nitrogen. Also not all nitrogen is volatile in soil, there are "stable" soil nitrogens that can accurately be measured and require biological action to release them from their "stable" form. There are in fact a lot of nitrogen compounds that get broken down by fungal growth that release considerable nitrogen into the soil. This is why when you see a fairy ring (fairy circle, elf ring/circle, pixie ring) there is a dark green band of plant growth to the interior of the ring. As the ring expands the fungal mycelium break down organic matter and release all kinds of stored nitrogen and other nutrients into the soil.
It would be interesting to do a full more comprehensive test at least once. Totally right about Nitrogen, I oversimplified that statement. I meant to say it's hard to get a full picture of the Nitrogen from the test so if you test the stable forms it's hard to tell what the full picture is anyway. But absolutely the soil life is what is making a lot of nutrients available with trades between plants and their exudates as well.
@@jacquesinthegarden I do full tests about every 4-5 years on both my garden and farm fields. I do testing at home every spring and fall for macronutrients and micronutrients, using a Lamotte soil testing kit Model STH-14. There is no replacement for the occasional professional soil testing, especially when you are starting in new soil so you can get an idea of the base soil you are working with. Some of us that have been farming/gardening most of our lives get pretty good at judging the soil when we are working it or how the plants are growing , but is still a good idea to get the tests on occasion. Some nutrient deficiencies are far harder to correct than others as are some soil conditions. Not to mention that if the conditions get out of whack you can open the door to some very nasty soil pathogens that are extremely hard to get rid of.
When taking samples from different parts of the garden and mixing them together, how do you know how to amend the different areas when you get the results back? Or do you just add amendments to all parts of the garden the same way?
So in the first section I took a broad sample, I did this because I haven't really done anything different across that whole area. So in that case I would treat it as one. For tests 2, 3, and 4 those were all contained smaller areas like 1 bed so I will treat them differently. On that side of the garden I tried a lot of different methods so I wanted to see how they varied.
@@jacquesinthegarden I guess it's unclear to me when you would do a broad sample and when you would do a more focused one. In your broad sample, it looked like there was a wide variety of things growing in that area. Wouldn't you expect nutrients to be depleted differently based on what was growing? I'm a very amateur gardener so I'm looking for any and all tips.
They also probably had the experience of previous generations of what crops were successful, to say nothing of the fact that most urban/suburban plots today are a wild mish-mash of fill rather than pristine native soil. There's no shame in using the tools at hand to understand what's going on in your soil!
I agree in general, its always a lot harder at the start to know how to work with your soil but once you get established and balanced it gets easier to self manage. Many farmers today test consistently because the investment upfront could save them thousands on amendments.
You ABSOLUTELY should take and test multiple samples, not mix them. For the same reason you said, one section may have had been depleted of a certain nutrient, and another section is fine. Especially if this is your first test, you need to know your growing space. Some people plant tomatoes (or whatever) in the same spot year after year and it is lacking one thing where another area is rich with it. Remember, you are "the expert" for thousands and what is fine for your garden, that you rotate and maintain, is NOT fine for an unexperienced gardener's garden.
It can get pricy but if you have enough growing areas it can be worth doing the first time around especially, that is true. In tests 2, 3, and 4 I did do just that and the results are varied in some unique ways. I will address that more in the future and bring that up.
