In article , "Gary and Karen Manning"
wrote:

I just received my soil test. It indicated a ph of 7.6. When I called
the company that did the test, they said that 7.6 was not a problem. Other
tests was about normal. The organic mater was 5.4. The reason I ordered
the test that nothing grows very well. What is your thought on this?

Thanks

Gary

Soil must drain well -- if you have clay one foot down, it will never
drain well, & plants will be too wet too often to thrive.

Soil should have a high portion of organic matter in it, requiring in some
cases quite literally tons of compost or peat to be worked deeply into the
soil before planting begins.

Soil should not be compacted on the surface, or mild waterings or rainfall
will not do more than dampen the surface & never reach the plants' roots.

Adequate watering that penetrates deeply but drains swiftly is required of
the majority of garden plants.

Adequate sunlight is required.

Adequate microorganisms in the soil are required because they are what
manufacture nitrogens & make sugars accessible for plant use.
Microorganisms will never be adequate in soil with very little organic
matter in it, or which is too often too dry or too wet.

Gardening takes a knack that can be honed over time, & once you get the
knack, it may not even be possible to figure out what it was you must have
done wrong before things started working out so well. The acts of
correcing whatever is obviously wrong will help in acquiring the knack
that some call a Green Thumb.

Plant choices should be zone-approrpriate so that your weather patterns
don't just kill stuff.

You don't give enough information for a definitive answer, but my guess is
if you deeply worked all the soil with a shitload of compost, you'd see
striking improvements.

-paghat the ratgirl

--
"Of what are you afraid, my child?" inquired the kindly teacher.
"Oh, sir! The flowers, they are wild," replied the timid creature.
-from Peter Newell's "Wild Flowers"
Visit the Garden of Paghat the Ratgirl: http://www.paghat.com