Soil Testing Services

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Why Test Soil?

A soil test will tell you what nutrients are in your soil and what you may need to add (in the form of fertilizer) for successful crop growth. Plants need nitrogen, phosphorous and potassium (macronutrients) as will as micronutrients to grow. Deficiency or excess of these elements will impact the health and productivity of plants. In addition, the pH (acid/alkaline level) of your soil has an impact upon how much of your soil's nutrients your plants will be able to use. Our Master Gardener Volunteers can provide or arrange several different tests for your soil, and can help you to interpret the results and choose an appropriate course of action if necessary.

pH Testing

A pH test measures the acid/alkaline level of your soil. In the pH scale, 7.0 is considered neutral; lower numbers indicate acid soil, while higher numbers indicate that the soil is alkaline. Most plants prefer a pH of 6.8. pH levels influence nutrient availability, with most nutrients being available to plants when the pH is in this range (6.8-7.0). If a soil is too alkaline or too acid, certain nutrients may be limited. To change soil pH to the desirable range, you will either add lime if the soil is too acid or sulfur if the soil is too alkaline. With your pH test result, we will let you know what amount of lime or sulfur is needed if any.

The CCE-Orleans Diagonostic Lab will perform a pH test on soil samples that are brought to our offices at 12690 State Route 31 in Albion, for a fee of $2/sample.

Nutrient Analysis

For further analysis of soil samples, CCE recommends sending samples out to either 

DairyOne https://dairyone.com/services/soil-laboratory/abo...

or

The Cornell Soil Health Laboratory https://soilhealthlab.cals.cornell.edu/testing-se...

Please contact Katie Oakes at 585-798-4265 ext 125 or email klo54@cornell.edu if you need help interpreting results.

Last updated November 1, 2024