For people who plant crops on their lands, it is necessary to consider soil fertility as an important factor. One must perform a soil test in order to establish the level of fertility of a piece of land. Normally, the quantity of micro and macro-nutrients available in the soil are what the test measures. The crops need these nutrients in order for them to grow healthily. This is worth knowing about Southern California Soil Testing.
Mostly, the commonly performed test is for the purposes of determining the level of pH or acidity. Another measured aspect is the cation exchange capacity, CEC. A high CEC level means that the soils are good as it shows higher cation exchange between the ground and plants. Furthermore, the test confirms the ability of the soil to provide as well as retain essential nutrients required by plants.
The level of CEC of a piece of land usually depends heavily on the percentage organic matter in the ground. The abbreviation OM is often used to refer to the percent organic matter. The OM also impacts the percentage base saturation. The base saturation measures the three most abundant cations, that is potassium, magnesium, and calcium.
Once the test has been completed, one can base on the findings to determine what changes or adjustments they need to do to make the soils more fertile. The most common amendment that most people take is to add fertilizer to the land so as to improve the amount of calcium, magnesium, and potassium cations. The land is only said to be fertile if the cations are available in the right amounts and proportions.
The correct fertilizer and lime quantities can only be added when one has established fertility of the land as mentioned above. It may only be one or a few nutrients that are lacking in the ground in some cases, and not necessarily all nutrients. By testing, one can know which nutrients need to be added and the quantities. Most homeowners apply lime on their lawns annually, believing that this improves its fertility.
But, when the very homeowners make a decision of performing a soil test, an entirely different situation is revealed. As a matter of fact, some homeowners realize later that adding lime only hurts the soil further as the expense of increasing its fertility. Most soils have a delicate balance of nutrients which must be kept this way. When amendments are over-applied, they could stress the plants by upsetting the balance.
The solubility of a wide range of nutrients in the soils is usually affected by its pH. Plants easily absorb the available nutrients when they are soluble. This means that the pH must be retained at the correct level in order to allow maximum absorption. Failure to observe this would mean that plants cannot the nutrients due to unsuitable pH level despite the land being suitably fertile.
Most plants require a pH value of between 6.5 and 7.0. That level of pH means that the soil is neutral or slightly acidic. However, it is also important to know that some plant varieties usually require acidic soils in order to grow well. Thus, one should set the level of pH of their soils depending on the plant they need to grow too
Mostly, the commonly performed test is for the purposes of determining the level of pH or acidity. Another measured aspect is the cation exchange capacity, CEC. A high CEC level means that the soils are good as it shows higher cation exchange between the ground and plants. Furthermore, the test confirms the ability of the soil to provide as well as retain essential nutrients required by plants.
The level of CEC of a piece of land usually depends heavily on the percentage organic matter in the ground. The abbreviation OM is often used to refer to the percent organic matter. The OM also impacts the percentage base saturation. The base saturation measures the three most abundant cations, that is potassium, magnesium, and calcium.
Once the test has been completed, one can base on the findings to determine what changes or adjustments they need to do to make the soils more fertile. The most common amendment that most people take is to add fertilizer to the land so as to improve the amount of calcium, magnesium, and potassium cations. The land is only said to be fertile if the cations are available in the right amounts and proportions.
The correct fertilizer and lime quantities can only be added when one has established fertility of the land as mentioned above. It may only be one or a few nutrients that are lacking in the ground in some cases, and not necessarily all nutrients. By testing, one can know which nutrients need to be added and the quantities. Most homeowners apply lime on their lawns annually, believing that this improves its fertility.
But, when the very homeowners make a decision of performing a soil test, an entirely different situation is revealed. As a matter of fact, some homeowners realize later that adding lime only hurts the soil further as the expense of increasing its fertility. Most soils have a delicate balance of nutrients which must be kept this way. When amendments are over-applied, they could stress the plants by upsetting the balance.
The solubility of a wide range of nutrients in the soils is usually affected by its pH. Plants easily absorb the available nutrients when they are soluble. This means that the pH must be retained at the correct level in order to allow maximum absorption. Failure to observe this would mean that plants cannot the nutrients due to unsuitable pH level despite the land being suitably fertile.
Most plants require a pH value of between 6.5 and 7.0. That level of pH means that the soil is neutral or slightly acidic. However, it is also important to know that some plant varieties usually require acidic soils in order to grow well. Thus, one should set the level of pH of their soils depending on the plant they need to grow too
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