SOIL DIAGNOSTIC TOOLS

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SOIL DIAGNOSTIC TOOLS
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Soil Management

• Testing your soil for plant available nutrients
• Fertilizing
• Adding Organic Matter
• Composting

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Soil testing is the only method of
knowing nutrient need!

• WHAT SOIL TESTING TELLS US
• Plant available P and K
• Crop P and K need
• Soil organic matter
• Soil pH and lime requirement

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Avoid unusual areas backfill, wet spots, etc.
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A shovel is OK but probe is preferred Mix 10
cores in a clean bucket
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Sampling soils

• when
• annual gardens, new turf
• fall, spring before tillage
• perennials, established turf
• anytime
• suspected salt damage
• very early spring
• sample each area separately
• repeat every 2-3 yrs

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Useful laboratory tests

• Routine
• soil pH, buffer pH
• organic matter
• available P and K
• Other
• Ca, Mg, S, Zn, B, Mn
• No good test/need
• N, Fe, Cu, Cl, Mo, Ni
• Problem solving
• texture, soluble salts
• Cl, Pb, As,...

UW Soil and Plant Analysis Lab 8452 Mineral Point
Rd, Verona 53593 (West Madison Ag. Research
Station)
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Soil test results - P

• stimulates root growth and flowering
• shallow rooted greater need
• optimum soil test P for turf and gardens
• - established turf 11 - 15 ppm
• - sweet corn 16 - 25 ppm
• - green bean 16 - 25 ppm
• - tomato 31 - 45 ppm
• - potato 161- 200 ppm

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Soil test results - K

• promotes disease resistance, winter hardiness
• root crops require most
• optimum soil test K for turf and gardens
• - established turf 41 - 60 ppm
• - sweet corn 101 - 120 ppm
• - green bean 101 - 120 ppm
• - tomato 121 - 180 ppm
• - potato 121- 160 ppm

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Changing Soil pH

• Increase add lime
• CaCO3, calcium carbonate
• The finer, the better
• Best to till into the soil
• Decrease add sulfur (not sulfate) or aluminum
  containing compound
• Elemental sulfur
• Aluminum sulfate

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Nitrogen Management

• Phosphorus and Potassium levels can be easily
  checked with soil testing and corrected with
  fertilizers
• No good soil test exists for N
• Along with water improper N fertility (too much
  or too little) is one of the biggest gardening
  problems

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Recommended fertilizer

• Gardens
• avoid high N fertilizers for most crops
• sweet corn, potato are exceptions
• avoid uniform, low grade (e. g.10-10-10)
• does not match plant need
• over supply P and K
• micronutrients generally not needed
• adjust pH as necessary

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Organic fertilizer

• chemically complex, contains C
• naturally occurring
• byproducts
• microorganisms must degrade
• slow release, rate ???
• improve structure with long-term use

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Organic fertilizer

• Nutrient
• Type N P2O5 K2O
• -------------------------------
• blood meal 13.0 1.5 0.6
• bone meal 2.2 27.0 0
• seaweed 1.5 1.0 4.9
• tree leaves 0.7 0.1 0.8
• greensand 0 1.4 6.3
• activated biosolid 6.0 3.0 0.2

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Inorganic fertilizers

• Nutrient
• Type N P2O5 K2O
• -------------- ---------------
• Miracle Gro 15 30 15
• General Turf 29 3 4
• Winterizer Turf 33 3 15
• Starter Turf 15 30 15

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Problem heavy soil

• aggregates tightly packed
• small pores
• poor drainage, roots suffocate
• cloddy if tilled wet
• compact easily
• improve with organic residues
• better crumb stability
• larger pores
• sand clay cement

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Problem light soil

• aggregates too big to pack tightly
• large pore spaces
• droughty
• improve with organic residues
• sponge
• better water holding capacity

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To Improve Soil Propertiesadd Organic Matter

• improve water and nutrient holding capacity
• improve microbial activity
• reduce pesticide and nutrient leaching
• provide nutrients
• suppress some diseases

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Compost
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Why Compost?

• Save Money
• Improve soil structure
• Improve plant growth
• Benefit the environment

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How to make compost

• Microorganisms do most of the work!
• Bacteria and Fungi break down fresh organic
  residues into compost using oxygen
• Process generates a lot of heat
• Up to 140 degrees F!
• Heat kills weed seeds and diseases

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• You need to
• Add the right balance of Carbon and Nitrogen
  (Browns and Greens)
• Turn the pile to improve oxygen flow
• Maintain a good moisture content (not too wet,
  not too dry)

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Add 1-2 Parts Brown to 1 Part Green
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Turning the pile

• Turn dont stir
• Improves oxygen, keeps the process moving

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Do Not Compost

• Meat, bones, fat
• Cat, dog, human waste
• Dairy products
• Charcoal ash
• Oils
• Thorny twigs
• Logs or large branches
• Sawdust from treated lumber
• Poison Ivy

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Troubleshooting
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When is the compost done?

• Original material is difficult to identify
• Few fibers left
• Smells like soil, or earth
• The pile is cool for at least 1 month
• Crumbly not slimy

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How long does it take?

• Depends on material, moisture content, and how
  often you turn
• Anywhere from 6 weeks to 1 year
• Cold Composting
• No turning, just pile it up and scoop out
  finished compost from the bottom of the pile - 1
  2 years

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Using Compost

• Amend over a site, never amend a hole
• ? incorporate at least 25- 50 by volume of a
• well composted organic matter source
• work in to a depth of at least 12-18 inches
• be sure that excess water in soil can drain
• sufficient topography to drain water
• use French drains where appropriate
• install sub-surface drainage just above unamended
  soil

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The Teacup Effect
Amended soil
Rootball
Unamended Slow-draining soil
Perched water
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_at_ 3 years without amendments
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_at_ 3 years with amendments
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View from afar