By Wade Hutcheson
University of
Georgia

Ready or not, another year is gone. It’s time to start thinking
about the spring garden.

Specifically, think about soil-testing. Right now, your garden
spot is at its lowest in regards to fertility. Soil-testing now
will allow you to correct some problems in advance.

One problem with most gardens is acidic soil, or low pH. There is
a scientific explanation about what pH is, but I’ll forgo that
and say that pH determines whether the plants can take advantage
of the nutrients present.

If the pH is low enough, you can fertilize all you want but the
plants can’t take advantage of the nutrients. If it gets too
high, the soil can become toxic to plants — but that’s rare.

Rule of thumb

A good rule of thumb is to keep the soil pH within a range of 5.8
to 6.5. This will work for most garden vegetables.

Low pH is a factor of our soils, environmental conditions and
fertilizers. It’s easily corrected by adding lime to the garden.
But you need to know how much lime to apply, and soil-testing
will provide that information.

The soil-test results will be only as good as the sample you
submit, so take the time to collect a good, representative
sample.

To do that, first determine the sample area. The vegetable garden
should be one sample area, but you may want to sample turf areas,
landscape and flower beds separately. Combine like areas such as
front and backyard turf into one sample.

Collect the sample

Once the sample area is defined, you’re ready to collect the
sample. For each sample area, take eight to 10 samples and
combine them in a clean, plastic bucket. Each sample should
represent the same amount of soil from the surface to a depth of
4 to 6 inches.

Think of it as driving a pipe into the ground to the proper
depth. What goes into the pipe is the individual sample. A shovel
or trowel will work, but slice away the sides so an equal amount
from surface to sampling depth is represented.

Mix all the samples together, discarding any rocks, roots or
other debris, and break up large soil pieces. From all that,
remove a large pint to submit as the sample.

Add some info

That, along with $5 and some information (name, address, crop
grown) is all you need. Drop the sample by your county UGA
Extension Service office, and the results will be mailed back to
you, usually within seven to 10 working days.

The results are written in a user-friendly format and will
indicate if any lime is needed and specific fertilizer
information.

If it recommends lime, apply it as soon as possible, since it
takes several months for lime to react with the soil and cause
the desired change. Wait until planting before adding
fertilizer.

Agricultural lime

Agricultural lime is widely available. It comes in powder or
granule form. Either will work and can be broadcast using a
spreader or the old-fashioned way, by hand.

The soil-test results are given in pounds per 1,000 square feet.
Figure square feet by multiplying the sample area width times the
length.

It may seem as if spring planting is a long way off, and by the
calendar, it is. Preparing for spring planting, though, starts
now.

By the way, if your tomatoes, squash, okra or melons suffered
from blossom end rot last year, using lime will help prevent that
this year.

Liming acid soils is one of the best things a gardener can do to
improve yields. Soil-testing lets the gardener know how much to
add. So don’t guess. Soil-test.

For more information, contact the county UGA Extension Service
office.