The Dirt on Dirt: What You Get with Professional Soil Testing

The posting describes the information and the value you get from having your garden soil professionally tested.

Here's a sad truth.  The sunniest area in my garden is not a place where I've been growing vegetables. It's not that I haven't noticed that this area might make for a good place to plant, it's just that it was not clear for planting, being covered in a heavy thicket of ivy, bushes, and weeds.

This year, I decided clear out this area and open up an additional 200 square feet of garden space.  The area is adjacent to where a pool once stood on the property and I was not sure if the soil had ever been improved in any way or, for that matter, if it might harbor lead or some other nasty like lead. 

I didn't really expect that the test would reveal that my home qualified as a Superfund site, but we live in an old house which was once painted with lead-based paint and I had no idea what type of pool chemicals, insecticides, or treated wood products might have been used in the area over the years.  I figured that if I was going to have the soil tested, I might as well test for lead and arsenic at the same time.

To better understand the quality of the soil and what I need to do to improve it's fertility, I decided to have it evaluated by a professional soil testing service.  These services can determine the soil pH, trace mineral content, percentage composition of organic material and can even test for the presence of heavy metals like lead, chromium, nickel and arsenic.  

I used a service called Timberleaf Soil Testing which is headquartered in Murrieta, California.  To have my soil tested, I sent them a bag of soil taken from 10 sampled areas within your garden, along with a diagram of my backyard and some information about my climate and location.  They analyzed the soil and sent me back a detailed report in just a few weeks.

What I like about the report was that it didn't just tell me what was wrong;  It told me precisely what I needed to do to improve the soil in this particular area of my garden.  For example, to lower the pH I need to add 2.5 lbs of 90% Sulfur for every 100 square feet of garden area.  I also need to add compost at a rate of 10 cubic feet for every 100 square feet of garden area.  Finally, Timberleaf identified which trace minerals were lacking and provided recommendations on what I need to do here as well.

And some really good news....Although my soil has higher levels of lead than the average U.S. plot of agricultural land, the level was well below the 300 parts per million that it generally recognized to dangerous.

If you want to have your soil tested, you can search for services in your area or you can mail your soil to Timberleaf Soil Testing.  If you visit their site, you'll get information on how to properly take soil samples and you can download the forms you need to submit your soil for testing. 

A basic soil test costs $45.  A more comprehensive set of tests is $85 and tests for specific heavy metals likes arsenic, lead, etc. are priced a la carte. 

I purchased the comprehensive package and added tests for arsenic and lead because of my specific concerns about the property.  I'm attaching a that Timberleaf sent me for those interested in seeing a full report.

Download PlanterTomato.com_Soil_Sample_Test

This was my first time using a professional testing service.  I think it was money well spent.

Comments

[wholesale pool chemicals]

Uuh!how much did you paid for this test ?
45$ or did you paid for the coprehensive one which is or 85$?

[H. Mark Delman]

I did the basic test this year. The first time I did the testing, I opted to test for heavy elements like lead because Im the fourth owner of this house and wanted to make sure their were no pollutants in the soil. Once that first test confirmed my soil was OK, the basic test is more than adequate.