Please take note: The information in this document applies to those soil test reports produced from analysis performed by the North Carolina Department of Agriculture. This information may not apply to an analysis performed in another state or from a private lab. If you have questions concerning the above situation, contact your state cooperative extension service or your state department of agriculture.

After submitting your soil samples for analysis, you will receive a report, through the mail, of your test results and recommendations. For some people, this report can be somewhat confusing. There are all sorts of numbers, on this report, that are the numerical results of all the various tests performed on the soil. Some people find these numbers to be overwhelming because they don't know what the numbers mean.

For most people, there are only a few items that should be of concern. The rest of the items are more important to agronomists, consultants or extension agents who are helping to diagnose a problem with a crop. The items that you need to look for are: the agronomists comments, the lime recommendations, the fertilizer recommendations, the minor element recommendations and the notes section.

Your report will have a section for each sample that you submitted. This section will contain your sample number, the crop that you selected and all of the results and recommendations for that sample. If you have more than one sample, there may be several sample results on one page. Depending on how many samples that you submitted, there may be several pages to the report. The results will be listed according to the sample number and crop that you list the sample under, so be sure that this information is correct when you submit your sample. See the article "Submitting Your Soil For Analysis" for correct submitting information.

Agronomist Comments

When you get your report, look at the Agronomist Comments first. If there is a serious problem with the soil, the agronomist will make comments here. If there is no serious problem, this area is usually blank, except when you have submitted a problem soil sample. There is usually a remark or recommendation from the agronomist when the sample is submitted as a problem sample. For more information on problem samples, see the article "Submitting Problem Soil Samples".

Lime Recommendations

Next, look at the section, for each sample, called the "Lime" recommendation. If you see the number "0" under this section, then this means that, for this sample, the pH is fine and no lime application is necessary. If you see a number, other than "0", then that means you should apply lime.

Depending on how you submitted your sample, if you need lime, you will see a number with either the letter "M" or the letter "T" beside it ( ex. "30M" or "2T"). This letter is very significant. The letter "M" stands for "pounds per 1000 square feet" while the letter"T" stands for "tons per acre". For example, "30M" means that you need to apply 30 pounds of lime to 1000 square feet of land and "2T" means you would need to apply 2 tons of lime to one acre of land. If submitted properly, the homeowner should receive the lime recommendation with the letter "M" and the letter "T" is a recommendation for a commercial farmer. Again, be sure that you submit your soil samples properly, so that you will get the correct recommendations for your situation.

Fertilizer Recommendations

Secondly, look at the fertilizer recommendations for each sample. This will be found, next to the "Lime" recommendation, under the sections "N", "P2O5" and "K2O".

If this is for a commercial farmer , there will be a number under each one of these elements ("N", "P2O5" and "K2O"). Each one of these numbers mean that you apply that number of pounds of that element per acre. For example, if under the "N" you have "120- 160", the "P2O5" you have "20" and under the "K2O" you have "180- 200", this means that you should apply: 120-160 pounds of nitrogen per acre, 20 pounds of phosphorus per acre and 180-200 pounds of potassium per acre.

If this is a recommendation for a homeowner, then the recommendation should be in "pounds of a complete fertilizer per 1000 square feet". The type of complete fertilizer would be based on the soil analysis plus the crop needs and would contain all three elements, if they are necessary. The homeowners fertilizer recommendation should look like this: (10 lbs 5-10-10 or EQUIV PER 1000 SQ FT). This means that it is recommended that you apply 10 pounds of the fertilizer called "5-10-10" to 1000 square feet of land. EQUIV stands for equivalent, which means if you didn't want to use "5-10-10", you could use an equivalent fertilizer. For example, an equivalent fertilizer to "5-10-10" would be "10-20- 20". If you chose this fertilizer instead of the "5-10-10", you would need to use 5 pounds of "10-20-20" to equal the 10 pounds of "5-10-10".

If you plan to use a fertilizer, other than what is recommended on your soil test report, contact your local county extension agent for assistance with choosing an equivalent fertilizer. For more information about different fertilizers, see the article "Inorganic Fertilizer Sources".

Minor Element Recommendations

Thirdly, look at the numbers under the elemental signs "Mg", "Cu", "Zn", "B" and "Mn". If you see the number "0" under these elements, then that means you have sufficient amounts of these elements, for the crop being grown. If you see a dollar sign under any one or more of these elements, that means your soil is deficient in that element and it is recommended that you apply some of this element to the soil. The recommendations for these deficient elements will either be found in the agronomists comments or you may be referred to a note under the "See Note" section. In the case of "Mg" (which stands for magnesium), this element is found in "dolomitic" limestone, and if your soil also has a low pH, then the test will recommend that you use dolomitic lime to raise your pH and provide the needed magnesium. For more information about liming materials, see the article "Liming Sources".

Notes Section

Finally, look for the section called "See Note". This section will have a number of a publication that is usually sent to you with your soil test report. This publication has information about the crop that you are growing and its needs. It will also explain how to apply the necessary elements to the crop.

I hope this information will help you to understand your soil test report. Once you understand the information that you need from this report, it is really not that difficult to decipher. If you have any questions about your soil test report, e-mail me at kenneth_bailey@ncsu.edu or contact your local cooperative extension agent.

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For questions regarding soil test reports, e-mail me!

Date Created 10/21/97.
Last revised on 5/7/02.