Green: 2017 Soil Test (Front only)

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Green
Posts: 6837
Joined: September 14th, 2012, 10:53 pm
Location: CT (Zone 6B)
Grass Type: KBG, TTTF, TTPR, and FF (various mixtures)
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Green: 2017 Soil Test (Front only)

Post by Green » May 6th, 2017, 8:28 pm

Well, this is interesting. Please let me know if any retesting needs to be done while Logan still has the sample. I say this because the Calcium number is supposedly a good bit higher this year...like it jumped more than usual.

Link to this year's 2017 Soil Test lab sheet from Logan (Front only):

Also, please let me know if you need me to post last year's test sheet into this thread also.
Link to last year's thread (front lawn is in first column and labeled as such): viewtopic.php?f=11&t=19757&hilit=Test%2A

Green
Posts: 6837
Joined: September 14th, 2012, 10:53 pm
Location: CT (Zone 6B)
Grass Type: KBG, TTTF, TTPR, and FF (various mixtures)
Lawn Size: 10000-20000
Level: Experienced

Re: Green: 2017 Soil Test (Front only)

Post by Green » May 6th, 2017, 8:51 pm

Since I can't post in the "site questions" forum, here is my issue:

I just started my soil test thread above, but haven't added myself to the queue thread yet, because I was unable to post a link to my file of the test. I tried uploading it via postimage as usual.
Now the editing period has expired, also.

Also, I noticed last year's test is no longer accessible from my end when I navigate to last year's thread.

What should I do? I'm trying to attach the test here but cannot...

Thanks.

Green
Posts: 6837
Joined: September 14th, 2012, 10:53 pm
Location: CT (Zone 6B)
Grass Type: KBG, TTTF, TTPR, and FF (various mixtures)
Lawn Size: 10000-20000
Level: Experienced

Re: Green: 2017 Soil Test (Front only)

Post by Green » May 6th, 2017, 10:40 pm

Ok. I finally got this year's test results uploaded properly:
Image

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And here is the 2016 test from last year, since the link in last year's thread appears broken now:
Image

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andy10917
Posts: 29739
Joined: February 23rd, 2009, 10:48 pm
Location: NY (Lower Hudson Valley)
Grass Type: Emblem KBG (Front); Blueberry KBG Monostand (Back)
Lawn Size: 1 acre-2 acre
Level: Advanced

Re: Green: 2017 Soil Test (Front only)

Post by andy10917 » May 20th, 2017, 9:51 am

I'm not going to sweat the 0.02 difference between the Loam boundary and your soil, especially with the nice OM number.

This is a tweaking situation, and that's good and bad news. It's good in that you're closing in on the target, but bad in that we have to focus on the RIGHT nutrient -- not the easy to find stuff.

Apply good calcitic lime (Encap/Mag-I-Cal/Solu-Cal) at the "Heavy Rate" on the bag mixed with 1 lb/K of Epsom Salts, ONLY ONCE.

Get and apply Triple Superphosphate (TSP, 0-46-0) at 2 lbs/K, monthly.

Get and apply Sulfate of Potash (SOP, 0-0-50) at 2 lbs/K, monthly until September.

Your choice of Nitrogen sources, but I'd consider the Aggressive Fall Regimen after Labor Day for your lawn/soil.

Iron is just a tad low. A little Milorganite snuck in or an app or two of Ferrous Sulfate at 3 lbs/K 60 days apart would polish that.

In the micro’s, it’s Boron and Zinc. Get Twenty Mule Team Laundry Soap (grocery) and Zinc Sulfate (Amazon/EBay), and apply each at three tablespoons/K every 60 days. Read the Micronutrient Application Guide for application specifics.

Green
Posts: 6837
Joined: September 14th, 2012, 10:53 pm
Location: CT (Zone 6B)
Grass Type: KBG, TTTF, TTPR, and FF (various mixtures)
Lawn Size: 10000-20000
Level: Experienced

Re: Green: 2017 Soil Test (Front only)

Post by Green » May 20th, 2017, 1:45 pm

Thanks, Andy. Sounds good.

TSP is going to be the toughest thing to get hold of I think. I'll try our CPS if I need to...they seemed willing to sell small quantities of stuff (a couple of 50-lb bags) when I called last year. I know they have SOP and urea, at least.

I have the micros from last year. I have plenty of Calcitic Lime (Encap and Solu-Cal) for that one application.

Question on the Lime: I notice you've switched to saying apply at the heavy bag rate. In the past, I was doing 9 lbs/K, regardless of the brand, as that was your old recommendation. Should I stick with that, or use what's printed on the bag/online? It seems like the manufacturer-recommended rates might be different for Encap and Solu-Cal.

Also, what do you think about the Calcium (and pH) value jumping up quickly since last year? Is this something that happens often? When I compare to 2015 though, I see more consistency with this year. What do you think causes this type of fluctuation in the values like I've had from 2015-2016-2017? I only did two Lime applications last year, believe it or not! I skipped the Fall app because someone told me he noticed that late Fall Lime (Solu-Cal specifically) was possibly contributing to snow mold on the lawns he manages.


User avatar
andy10917
Posts: 29739
Joined: February 23rd, 2009, 10:48 pm
Location: NY (Lower Hudson Valley)
Grass Type: Emblem KBG (Front); Blueberry KBG Monostand (Back)
Lawn Size: 1 acre-2 acre
Level: Advanced

Re: Green: 2017 Soil Test (Front only)

Post by andy10917 » May 20th, 2017, 2:14 pm

About the Lime: once upon a time, all of the good brands were around 9 lbs/K, so I used 9 lbs/K. Now I'm saying use the Heavy Rate on the bag as products are listed between 8 lbs/K and 12.5 lbs/K. I don't have the time to fiddle with brand-specific numbers.

About the variance: I dunno. Last year might have been wrong, this year could be wrong, both could be wrong, or both could be right for the moment of the test. If I tried to figure it out, I'd get 3 tests done in the season. I bet conservatively and if next year indicated that this year was an outlier, deal with it and move on.

Green
Posts: 6837
Joined: September 14th, 2012, 10:53 pm
Location: CT (Zone 6B)
Grass Type: KBG, TTTF, TTPR, and FF (various mixtures)
Lawn Size: 10000-20000
Level: Experienced

Re: Green: 2017 Soil Test (Front only)

Post by Green » May 20th, 2017, 3:06 pm

All I can figure, is that I might have sampled the hell-strips more than last year. And I might have a tendency to over-apply Lime in those areas. Maybe 15% of my sample was taken from those areas this year, and possibly less last year...

The only other thing that's changed is irrigation since Summer 2015. Still deep and infrequent, but a bit less deep and a bit more frequent after the irrigation system was installed (less water waste/overwatering). Maybe proper irrigation since then has been helping Calcium to work its way down to the 4-inch level over the past year-and-a-half plus.

Ok. Thank you. At least the soil is trending in the right direction.

Green
Posts: 6837
Joined: September 14th, 2012, 10:53 pm
Location: CT (Zone 6B)
Grass Type: KBG, TTTF, TTPR, and FF (various mixtures)
Lawn Size: 10000-20000
Level: Experienced

Re: Green: 2017 Soil Test (Front only)

Post by Green » May 20th, 2017, 3:14 pm

About the hell strips: I also did heavy gypsum on them for several years now after the Winter. However, I sampled prior to applying it in 2017.

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