Soil PH

   / Soil PH #1  
D

Dennisfly

Gold Member
Joined
Nov 9, 2003
Messages
273
Location
Lake Anna, Virginia and Alleghany County, VA
Tractor
John Deere 4410
I have a two year old house where the top soil was scraped off by the excavators. The remaining area is clay and planted with grass that is sparse and struggling.

This spring I want to fertilize and overseed. I've been told I might need to use lime. How do you test the soil PH and what is the desireable range?
 
   / Soil PH #2  
Can't help you with the PH range but I'm sure someone will speak up. I am sure you can find the info at the state extension office as well. They likely have a webpage on growing a lawn, what the PH should be, and what seeds work well for your area.

You can be the soil tests at almost any hardware/big box store. The NC Extension office has boxes that are to be filled with soil samples that are sent off to the state lab for free. VA may do the same. I have the boxes at home. One day I'll fill them and send them to the lab. :D

I was at the NC website this weekend and they test for lots of stuff. Nematodes is one that surprised me. Guess its bad for some crops.

Later,
Dan
 
   / Soil PH #3  
Most extension offices will test your pH for a small fee. in my area it's $2. The sample must be dry.

Normal pH is 7. higher is acid and needs to be treated with lime, lower is sweet and can be made more acid with hort sulfer.
Most grass will grow at between 5.5 and 7.5 with no problem.

You can get a pH meeter at most garden centers for under $15 that will be close enough for grass and will last for years, I;ve used mine for at least 10 years.

The pH of the soil determines how effectively the plant can utilize nutrients and trace nutrients in the soil. Some plants like acid soil like blueberrys. Other plants will bloom differently depending on the pH. Hydranga will produce blue flowers in acid soil and pink in sweet soil.

I suspect your problem is lack of good soil for the seed to germinate. You might want to consider some compost or topsoil over the clay.
 
   / Soil PH #4  
I think a pH > 7 is alkaline and a pH < 7 is acid. Someone help us here!
Bob
 
   / Soil PH #5  
Doc Bob, you're right, above 7 is alkaline or basic, below 7 is acidic.
Otherwise, Toad Hill is right.
Most garden places will have a chemical testing set for ten bucks, or you can bring them a soil sample and they can test themselves for the privelege of selling you the right stuff.
I'm not certain about lawns but most veggies like 6.0 to 6.5 ph.
 
   / Soil PH #6  
Happy You're right I mixed them up, I guess I can't think and type at the same time.
 
   / Soil PH #8  
As was stated previous you will need some topdressing of some sort. Clay is not a good medium to grow grass. People think that so long as the grass grows it will be fine. The problem is in the Spring when you have lots pf moisture the grass will usually grow pretty good,regardless, if a little fertilizer is added. By the time Summer comes and it gets dry people are saying what happened to my grass? The problem is the water holding ability of the soil. The more topsoil the better water retention and tilth for their grass to grow. Also lack of topsoil adds to some types of bug infestations due to the dry soil. The bugs are looking for moisture, and the best place to get it from is the roots of your grass:eek:. In our area you need a bare minimum of 4" of topsoil and more is better. Most places recommend 10-12", but this is cost prohibitive at $25.00 a yard, unless the yard is real small.
 
   / Soil PH #10  
If you do have to add lime, be sure to wear breathing protection and gloves, safety glasses. Also, I believe you should add lime at least 30 days before adding any fertilizer. As others have said, you can find kits for testing your soil which will tell you how what levels of nitrogen, pot ash,etc as well as your ph level. Hope this helps.
 
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