On 22 Jul 2003 20:42:51 GMT, (FarmerDill) wrote:

Watch out for the home soil tests kits. Many of them are VERY unreliable.
Virtually all state agricultural colleges laboratory testing through local ag
extention agents (county agents). Used to be free but many now charge a nominal
fee
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I agree trhat the home soil test kits can be unreliable, from my
experience, I've found that the little capsules with the test
chemicals dry up and deteriorate. For the RapidTest brand I've
used, the Blue Potash capsule deteriorates first.

With that in mind, see if you can find out when the kits are stocked
at your local store and only buy the test kit if you can get it within
a month or so of being newly stocked. Even then, look real close
at the package and see if the capsules are beginning to deterioate.
I've found that you can see the Blue Potash test capsules becoming
discolored and spotty when they begin to deteriorate.

There are other high quality test kits you can buy either online or
from garden supply catalogs but they are generally too expensive
for doing just a few samples on the home garden.

Of course, the better way to go is to have the soil tested
professionally. Here in New Jersey, the local county AG
Extension Agent does them for about $10 and you get a more
complete analysis than just the N/P/K & PH tests that the home
test kits give you.

---pete---