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Testing PH
How important is testing the PH before you plant your food plots?
What do most of you do, use a test it your self kit or send a soil sample away to get tested? Thanks for any info you can provide. |
RE: Testing PH
I never have before, but I would like to try it. My plots never do bad but knowing what was in the soil would help. I'm learning how to in a few days in my Horticulture Ag class. I'll post it on here if you haven't had any responses.
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RE: Testing PH
Soil testing is BY FAR the most imporatant part of a food plot preparation. After several failed attempts at "plant and pray", I have found that with a soil sample, you up your odds of a successful plot tremendously, provided you follow the recommendations. I use the Biologic sample for a couple of reasons (1) it is easy (2) it is cheap (about $8/sample) (3) it is fast, results emailed in a few days (4) itis plantspecific, meaning if I tell tehm I want to plant brassicus, they will tell me the actual ph, optimum ph, and how much lime and fertilizer i need to add to theplot, and (5) i dont have a local place to take my samples. It is very cehap and easy and takes a lot of guesswork out of it. In the long run, you will same time, $ and frustration with a soil sample. Good luck.
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RE: Testing PH
If the PH is all I need I take the sample to the Ag office and they have local garden club do the test for free.
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RE: Testing PH
Thanks alot for all of your responses. I have heard its a waste of time trying to plant w/o getting the PH correct.
So what you say is you send a sample to Biologic? Is this from the web site http://mossyoakbiologic.com? What do you put your soil sample in and how much is needed to send out? ORIGINAL: DanM3029 Soil testing is BY FAR the most imporatant part of a food plot preparation. After several failed attempts at "plant and pray", I have found that with a soil sample, you up your odds of a successful plot tremendously, provided you follow the recommendations. I use the Biologic sample for a couple of reasons (1) it is easy (2) it is cheap (about $8/sample) (3) it is fast, results emailed in a few days (4) itis plantspecific, meaning if I tell tehm I want to plant brassicus, they will tell me the actual ph, optimum ph, and how much lime and fertilizer i need to add to theplot, and (5) i dont have a local place to take my samples. It is very cehap and easy and takes a lot of guesswork out of it. In the long run, you will same time, $ and frustration with a soil sample. Good luck. |
RE: Testing PH
ORIGINAL: DanM3029 Soil testing is BY FAR the most imporatant part of a food plot preparation. After several failed attempts at "plant and pray", I have found that with a soil sample, you up your odds of a successful plot tremendously, provided you follow the recommendations. I use the Biologic sample for a couple of reasons (1) it is easy (2) it is cheap (about $8/sample) (3) it is fast, results emailed in a few days (4) itis plantspecific, meaning if I tell tehm I want to plant brassicus, they will tell me the actual ph, optimum ph, and how much lime and fertilizer i need to add to theplot, and (5) i dont have a local place to take my samples. It is very cehap and easy and takes a lot of guesswork out of it. In the long run, you will same time, $ and frustration with a soil sample. Good luck. |
RE: Testing PH
Entr the Biologic site. on the drop down menu on the left go to Biologic Soil Test, open that, print out the form then get your sample. I dig down a couple of inches, get a small sample, no bigger than a dixie cup, and get one from 4 different areas of my plot. I pout all the dirt in a ziplock bag and mix it together. Then i reduce the sameple down to about a cup total. I put that in a sandwich sized ziplock bag, but that ziplock into a bigger ziplock (gallon size) with the biologic sample information sheet (filled out), seal that, and put it into a mailer envelope. Doint it this way allows me to submit aa buch of different sampel at the same time. I have 8 different plots, so i can submit them all in trhe same mailer withiout the infromation sheets getting mizxed up with the wrong sample. Just make sure that when you get your sample, use clean equipment, be it a shovel or trowel, as contaiminants on the tool can skew the sample. Good luck.
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RE: Testing PH
ORIGINAL: RockinChair x2. We usually send ours away to the Whitetail Institute. They do a fantastic job. thanks |
RE: Testing PH
ORIGINAL: DanM3029 Entr the Biologic site. on the drop down menu on the left go to Biologic Soil Test, open that, print out the form then get your sample. I dig down a couple of inches, get a small sample, no bigger than a dixie cup, and get one from 4 different areas of my plot. I pout all the dirt in a ziplock bag and mix it together. Then i reduce the sameple down to about a cup total. I put that in a sandwich sized ziplock bag, but that ziplock into a bigger ziplock (gallon size) with the biologic sample information sheet (filled out), seal that, and put it into a mailer envelope. Doint it this way allows me to submit aa buch of different sampel at the same time. I have 8 different plots, so i can submit them all in trhe same mailer withiout the infromation sheets getting mizxed up with the wrong sample. Just make sure that when you get your sample, use clean equipment, be it a shovel or trowel, as contaiminants on the tool can skew the sample. Good luck.  |
RE: Testing PH
yeah, I have sent as many as 4 at a time. Just make sure your sample is in a small ziplock, and the info sheet and the samplethen goin the larger ziplock so they stay together. This seems to work well.
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RE: Testing PH
Soil samplers are the most impotant part of my prep. With spots lets me know what I can plant. If my ph is lower than 5.3 I will not plant clover as it will not do well. I try to get up to at least 5.5 with a heavy dose of lime to get above 5.8 immediatly.
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RE: Testing PH
ORIGINAL: DanM3029 Entr the Biologic site. on the drop down menu on the left go to Biologic Soil Test, open that, print out the form then get your sample. I dig down a couple of inches, get a small sample, no bigger than a dixie cup, and get one from 4 different areas of my plot. I pout all the dirt in a ziplock bag and mix it together. Then i reduce the sameple down to about a cup total. I put that in a sandwich sized ziplock bag, but that ziplock into a bigger ziplock (gallon size) with the biologic sample information sheet (filled out), seal that, and put it into a mailer envelope. Doint it this way allows me to submit aa buch of different sampel at the same time. I have 8 different plots, so i can submit them all in trhe same mailer withiout the infromation sheets getting mizxed up with the wrong sample. Just make sure that when you get your sample, use clean equipment, be it a shovel or trowel, as contaiminants on the tool can skew the sample. Good luck. i have 2 plots realtively close to each other. how do i send them both in at the same time??????????? if i have 2 plots do i need 2 sheets and 2 big gallon bags with 2 small ziplock bags with a soil sample from each plot? can there be grass in the samples?? i also just downloaded the forms and printed them out ..........i looked at examples of the email they send you about your ph and stuff and nothing on there except the ph level makes since to me...........any help on telling me what the stuff means?? |
RE: Testing PH
anybody?
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RE: Testing PH
Here is howI do it, and I do one sample for each plot. I get a container, usually a sandwich sized zip lock bag. I put a name on it in black magic marker, something like "Plot #1, big field". Then I take another ziplock and put a label on that "Plot #2, Honey Hole". THen I go to my plots, dig down a couple of inches in to the dirt, and put some dirt into the ziplock bag for that plot. I do this in 4 or five spots within the plot. I try not to get any vegetation in the bag. Then I take the other bag and go to the other plot and do the same thing. Now I have two labeled ziplock bags filled with dirt. It is important that you use a clean trowel or shovel when you dig the dirt so you do not contaminate the sample with chemicals that are on the trowel/shovel. With the dirt in the ziplock bag, I try to mix it around pretty good so the sample is evenly distributed in the bag. this will give an average for ph and nutrients within the food plot. Now once i am home, I lay out on the table two sandwich sized ziplock bags that are labeled and contain dirt. Next I fill out the soil sample information sheet. On the Biologic shet, if you look in the top right corner of the information part, right above "Crop to be grown" in the grey shaded area, it says "Field Name or Number - DO NOT LEAVE BLANK-" I will put in that box "Plot #1, big field". The where it asks what I intend to grow in that field, I will check that box. IF it is corn and soybeans, I will put down Bio-Maxx, which is the Biologic mix of corn and soybeans. I will fill out the same information on another sheet for the other sampl, and lable that under Field Name or Number "Plot #2, Honey Hole". Now I have two soil samples in labeled sandwich sized zip lock bags, and two information sheets. I will now get 2 gallon sized ziplock bags. I put on the front of one, "Plot #1, Big Field" and on the other "Plot#2, Honey Hole". Open the gallon sized bag,put in the information sheet and soil sample ziplockfor "Plot #1, Big Field"into the gallon sized ziplock and seal it. Now the soil sample and information are contained within the same bag. The information and soil sample stay together. Then I take the other gallon ziplock and add the soil sample sandwich sized ziplock and infromation sheet to it. now i have 2 gallon sized ziplocks that each contain a sample and information sheet. I can put both into a mailer envelope or box and send them to the Biologic LAb at the same time and not have to worry about them mixing the sample witht he wrong information. I have sent in as many as 4 samples at the same time. Or you can send the soil sample and information sheet in its own mailer, one at a time. Hope this helps.
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RE: Testing PH
As far as how to read the information, the biologic is pretty easy, just take some time with it., The Ph reading gives you the actual sample Ph, and the optimm Ph for the plot you specified on the infromation sheet you trold them you intended to grow. That is pretty easy. Then the biologic test is specific for four elements, Phosphorus (P), Potassium (K), Calcium (Ca) and Magnesium (Ma). THe biologic results show what is in our sample of those 4 elements, and how much of each. There is a graph for each element, and ranges of very low, low, medium, optimum and very high. Again, these ranges are for the plot you sepcified in the sample information sheet. If you sepcified Bio-Maxx, they will give you the optimim Ph and nutrient (element) requirements for Bio-Maxx. The next table shows how much of lime, (P), (K), (Ca) and (Ma) you need for bulk apllication per acre. The lime is again pretty easy. The P,K,Ca and Ma requirements of bulk application allow you to get a custom blend of fertilizer from the local fertilizer dealer. The dealer can mix to the specific plot requirements using the sample result. OR, the bottom table tells you how much N,P,K bagged fertilizer you need. The NPK bagged fert is the stuff you buy at Home Depot or Lowes. IT will have numbers on the front, like 5-5-5 or 10-10-10. The final chart on the sample information sheet gives you the lb/acre of these commonly available NPK fertilizers that you should use on the specific plot based upon your sample results. It really isn't that hard to figure out once you ahve it in your hand and take a look at it. I think the fertilizer dealer would be able to mix you up a custom blend pretty easily with a copy of the sample results. Good Luck.
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RE: Testing PH
All of the samples I have done they request that you thoroughly dry the samples before sealing them up, remove any plant materials and rocks.
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RE: Testing PH
ORIGINAL: DanM3029 Here is howI do it, and I do one sample for each plot. I get a container, usually a sandwich sized zip lock bag. I put a name on it in black magic marker, something like "Plot #1, big field". Then I take another ziplock and put a label on that "Plot #2, Honey Hole". THen I go to my plots, dig down a couple of inches in to the dirt, and put some dirt into the ziplock bag for that plot. I do this in 4 or five spots within the plot. I try not to get any vegetation in the bag. Then I take the other bag and go to the other plot and do the same thing. Now I have two labeled ziplock bags filled with dirt. It is important that you use a clean trowel or shovel when you dig the dirt so you do not contaminate the sample with chemicals that are on the trowel/shovel. With the dirt in the ziplock bag, I try to mix it around pretty good so the sample is evenly distributed in the bag. this will give an average for ph and nutrients within the food plot. Now once i am home, I lay out on the table two sandwich sized ziplock bags that are labeled and contain dirt. Next I fill out the soil sample information sheet. On the Biologic shet, if you look in the top right corner of the information part, right above "Crop to be grown" in the grey shaded area, it says "Field Name or Number - DO NOT LEAVE BLANK-" I will put in that box "Plot #1, big field". The where it asks what I intend to grow in that field, I will check that box. IF it is corn and soybeans, I will put down Bio-Maxx, which is the Biologic mix of corn and soybeans. I will fill out the same information on another sheet for the other sampl, and lable that under Field Name or Number "Plot #2, Honey Hole". Now I have two soil samples in labeled sandwich sized zip lock bags, and two information sheets. I will now get 2 gallon sized ziplock bags. I put on the front of one, "Plot #1, Big Field" and on the other "Plot#2, Honey Hole". Open the gallon sized bag,put in the information sheet and soil sample ziplockfor "Plot #1, Big Field"into the gallon sized ziplock and seal it. Now the soil sample and information are contained within the same bag. The information and soil sample stay together. Then I take the other gallon ziplock and add the soil sample sandwich sized ziplock and infromation sheet to it. now i have 2 gallon sized ziplocks that each contain a sample and information sheet. I can put both into a mailer envelope or box and send them to the Biologic LAb at the same time and not have to worry about them mixing the sample witht he wrong information. I have sent in as many as 4 samples at the same time. Or you can send the soil sample and information sheet in its own mailer, one at a time. Hope this helps. i dont know what im going to plant yet. what do i put in the "crop to be grown box? once i get ph level, do i need fertilizer AND lime or just fertilizer? before i test the ph level do i need to disk the ground first? |
RE: Testing PH
As soon as you can get a little dirt for the sample send it in, scrape the snow back if necessary and get a cup of dirt. As soon as you get the results get the lime out ASAP. It takes a few months to get a + ph result from the lime. Burn the fields off if you can. It might help to get rid of a few unwanted seeds and it will help the soil some.
Pay attention to what the other people in your area plant that they have good luck with. Usually there are two different type of food plots, spring planted (iron clay peas, lab lab, etc) and the fall plots (cereal grain grasses, brassicas, etc). I have one plot with a good stand of arrowleaf and crimson clover in it, but it doesn't grow enough for grazing until late Jan and has all died down by Aug, then I plant the grain seeds. |
RE: Testing PH
so im gonna plant this spring so i get ph sample. do i really need the lime though or could i just use fertilizer???? fertilizer would be much easier for me
if i do use lime do i put lime out before i burn fields? when do i use the ferilizer? |
RE: Testing PH
I think the lime is more important than the fertilizer, they work together though. I would lime as soon as possible, and the burn is not a necessity. We usually put the fertilizer out when we plant or after the plants get up 3 or 4 inches in height.
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RE: Testing PH
so i should just cut the grass test ph, spread lime, plant seed, then ferilize
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RE: Testing PH
what do you guys reccommend planting and how do i plant it?
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