Everything I read says get a soil test before planting, but with those being $10-$20 for each area, would a ph meter be better? I've seen them for around $20. Thanks, Scott Woody

Definately want to do the soil test and here is where I get mine done for only $7.50 per sample. They do a great job, and email your results within a few days after they receive your samples.

http://www.mossyoakbiologic.com/soiltest/soiltest.asp

God Bless

Don't waste your money on a ph meter. A good one would cost more than $20.00! Got to your local Extension Agent and they will instruct you on the proper procedure, and give you the sample box. It was FREE for landowners in VA! Can't beat that deal with a stick.

Alright, I'll do soil test. Thanks for the info. Another question. Do I need to get a soil test for each site on a single property? One place is 105 acres. Will be doing at least 2 plots, less than 1/4 acre on both of those and maybe one more that is in a woods opening around 20'x20'. Thanks, Scott Woody

The general rule of thumb is to take seperate samples for each different type of soil you have. If the soil is a diffrerent color in one area versus another, one has been grazed and the other hasn't, one is sandy the other is clayey, one is in the woods and the other is in a field, etc. Get the point?

No decision here. PH meters are a joke IMO and based on my experience and based on everything I've read. Soil testing is the best thing our club ever started doing for successful plots. It made all the difference.

i know for a fact that soil ph can make a difference. a few years ago i cleared out most of the brush/saplings/trees from an abandoned pasture, then i limed/fertilized and planted it as a dove plot for the last few years. this spring i cleared out another small section of the field. i was not able to lime it, but was able to fertilize it.

the sunflowers growing in the new spot are dinky, stunted, yellowish and generally look poor. 10 yards away in the areas that i limed, the sunflowers are about twice as tall, have a stem 3x the diameter, and are generally a much better looking plant.

same soil, same fert, except one area didn't have lime. i think the starting ph was 5.8 or 6.0.

Psandhu, you are 100% correct. Lime can make or break your food plot efforts. I found out the hard way too. When we started soil testing and liming according to the recs we started growing some beautiful plots.

The point here is is a ph meter or a soil test the best way to determine the ph. I'd compare it to this;is an airplane or a bicycle the best way to go from New York to Las Vegas. Ph meters helped me waste some time and money and for that I will state that you are wasting your money, time and effort if you depend on a ph meter. I have had many dissapointments with many of the products sold by the same company I got the meter from.

ag lime is pretty cheap too. $6/ton for 62% ECC around here. that's the price for it dumped into the back of a pickup, dumptruck or whatever. if you go there just before they close on a saturday, they'll probably give you a ton for free because it's not worth their hastle to recompute their books.

ask me how i spread it from the back of a pickup.

How do you spread it Psandhu?