This is the time of the year that I need to share a little information about a topic that should be a high priority for all of our farmers and for most of our homeowners as well. Analyzing soil samples is a free service offered by the North Carolina Department of Agriculture, yet very few people take advantage of this service.

It doesn't matter if you are a homeowner growing flowers, centipede grass, or a small vegetable garden; or if you are a large farmer growing thousands of acres of tobacco, corn, soybeans, or cotton; or if you a commercial producer growing vegetables, grapes, pecans, or ornamental plants. Taking good soil samples on a regular basis and knowing how to use the results of those samples is by far the single most important thing you can do.

If it cost $50, or even $10, to have a soil sample analyzed, I might be able to understand why some people would choose not to take soil samples. But when the service is free, I cannot understand why so many people just go ahead and plant something without knowing what is in the soil or what needs to be applied to the soil for their plants to grow properly.

Since I work so directly with farmers, the confusing thing to me is that these people have to rely on the crops they plant for their livelihood. If their crops do not yield well, they will not be able to pay their bills. They, more than anyone else, should take soil sampling seriously. Homeowners on the other hand, generally grow plants for the fun of it or to make their place look better. If the grass in the lawn dies or if the tomatoes in the garden fail to produce anything, it is no big deal.

All you have to do is to gather a good sample of the soil in the area you want to plant, place the soil in boxes that are provided and that are available at no cost from my office, fill out a simple information sheet, and either mail your samples to the soil lab in Raleigh or drop them off at the Extension Center, and we will get them to Raleigh for you. Any agent on my staff would be glad to teach you how to take good soil samples.

Once the soil samples are analyzed, the results are returned to you in the mail. For those of you with computers and access to the web, you can even download your soil reports right from your computer. If you don't know how to read the reports or do not understand what all the numbers mean, my agricultural agents or I would be glad to explain them to you and help you develop a good nutrient management plan.

It is a well-known fact that plants do not grow well in soils that are too acid or that are too basic. It is also a wel-known fact that plants require a certain amount of nutrients in order to grow properly. It is also a well-known fact that plants can use only a certain amount of nutrients, and if an excess is provided, it simply leaches into the groundwater.

There is no way unless you take good soil samples that you will know if your soil is too acid or too basic, so you can determine if you need to lime or not, and if you do lime, how much to apply. There is no way to know how much fertilizer your crops need and to be able to purchase just the right blend of fertilizer in order to save money or to prevent excessive nutrients from leaching from the soil. There is no way to know if special micronutrients are needed and if so, how much. There is no way to know if conditions in your soil might create toxic situations for your plants.

I recently received a report from NCDA providing a summary of the soil samples that were taken in Robeson County last year. Would you believe that with all the tobacco grown in this county and tobacco being the livelihood of so many people, only 107 soil samples were taken for tobacco fields. Our homeowners took three times more samples of their lawns than our tobacco farmers took of their fields.

This report indicates that almost one-third of the samples submitted had a pH of less than what was needed for that crop. Hopefully, the people taking these samples applied the lime that was needed to correct the acid soils problems. If they didn't, they may have still harvested a crop, but it is certain that their yield was less than what it could have been.

Almost 80 percent of the samples taken indicated an excessive amount of phosphorus in the soil. In fact, the reports indicate that for these samples, there was so much phosphorus already in the soil that additional phosphorus was not needed. Hopefully, the people taking these samples trimmed back their fertilizer applications by not buying phosphorus and saved themselves a lot of money.

It is not necessary to take soil samples in the same area every year. Depending upon the crop, samples may be needed only every second or third year. But what is most important is that samples be taken regularly and that the results of these samples be used properly. If you want more information or assistance, please give me a call at 910-671-3276.

E-mail address: Everett_Davis@ncsu.edu

Mailing Address:
P. O. Box 2280
Lumberton, NC 28359-2280

Phone: 910-671-3276
Fax: 910-671-6278

Date Created 12/09/03