A successful garden needs nutrient-rich soil, not just a pile of dirt. Soil is a combined mixture of dirt, organic matter, and minerals. I could get overly scientific here--soil is complicated--but I won't. I only want to research and document enough to ensure that my own heirloom garden is healthy and fruitful.
It feels pretty terrific to get my hands in the soil this Spring. The stuff is magical. Soil is ever-changing, fertile, alive ... full of air and water and all kinds of natural STUFF. Forget cremation and burial vaults; when I die, I want my body to go straight into the ground so the roots and worms can return me to Mother Nature asap.
Breaking soil down to its most basic components:
- Texture, or the size of soil particles. Soil with fine particles is known as sand, and on the other end of the spectrum is clay. Good soil texture should fall somewhere within the two. A good test for texture is to take a handful of soil and gently squeeze it. It should clump together. Upon squeezing harder, it should break apart easily.
- Fertility, or the level of mineral nutrients in the soil. The three primary nutrients used by plants are nitrogen, potassium, and phosphorus. Funky things happen to plants that don't get a balance of these nutrients.
- pH, or the measure of acidity or alkalinity. This is probably the most important of the properties. Below is a generic pH scale. Plants typically grow fine at a level of about 6-7 pH, but some plants can be picky. Incorrect pH level can retard a plant's nutrient uptake, so if pH levels falls to the extreme, either way on the scale, hang up your overalls this season. Your soil will need some serious amending.
Upon investigating my soil, I feel confident that the texture is fine. I had successfully grown shrubs in this bed, so the mineral content is likely pretty good. But what about the pH? I know that I have to get this right for growing veggies. Thankfully, the Easter Bunny came to my aid this year with a digital pH reader in my basket.
It seemed like a perfect science experiment to bring my 4th Grader in on, so we both put on some garden gloves and spent late afternoon outside.
Testing Our Soil's pH Level
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| 1. We pushed aside the top few inches from our first planting bed and collected about two cups of the soil below, digging to a depth of 4-6 inches. We sifted the soil to remove rocks and debris. |
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| 2. We poured a little more than a cup of distilled water into the collected soil and stirred to create a nice, thick mud. (My gal loved this part, and wanted to make mud pies for dinner.) |
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| 3. We polished the pH Meter's probe, per manufacturer's instruction, pressed the "on" button, and gently pushed it into the mud, holding for 60 seconds. 7.0 pH. Repeated Step 3 in a separate spot in the mud. 7.0 pH. |
A measurement of 7.0 pH means that my soil in this bed is smack-dab NEUTRAL, falling in the high end of the general range for positive plant growth. This is the bed in which I plan to cultivate heirloom tomatoes, though, and tomatoes do better with a lower pH level, more in the 6-6.5 range.
Based on this reading, I'll do some amending, starting with some rich compost from my neighbor's yard and pine needle mulch gathered from my mother's mid-Michigan property. Both are said to lower soil pH. My other two main planting beds will be tested next.
I may decide to test the nutrients in my soil as well. Many states and universities offer soil tests for sale. You get the test kit, follow the proper instructions for gathering a soil sample, and send it to their lab for research. It takes a few weeks to get results. Michigan State University's Extension program offers kits for $20. You'll find more info here: http://www.css.msu.edu/SPNL/Faq.cfm.
Sources:
Davis, Ph.D., Jessica, "How to Lower Your Soil pH," Organic Gardening, http://www.organicgardening.com/learn-and-grow/how-lower-your-soil-ph.
"Gardening in Michigan," Michigan State University Extension, http://migarden.msu.edu/migarden/soil.
Iannotti, Marie, "Amending Your Garden Soil - Making Good Soil Out of Bad," http://gardening.about.com/od/gardenprimer/a/Amending_Soil.htm.
James, Russ, "Tomato Growing Tips," http://tomato-tips.com/soil-ph-how-to-correct-soil-ph-in-garden-soil.html.
"What Is Soil?" National Conservation Resources Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture,
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