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Hello Mid-Ohio Valley farmers and gardeners! Wow! Fall temperatures are here as highs are in the 60’s. It has been a while since the beginning of autumn has brought with it such cool temperatures. As we say goodbye to heat loving summer vegetables such tomatoes and sweet corn, we say hello to cool season vegetables and planting cover crops in the garden.

If your summer vegetables are harvested, think about planting a cover crop in the garden. Historically, farmers and gardeners have referred to cover crops as green manure because they add organic matter back into the soil in the spring.

Cover crops reduce soil erosion during the winter, improve soil quality, scavenge unused nutrient and can loosen heavy clay soils. Fall cover crops such as wheat, cereal rye or oats can be planted. Legumes can also be planted such as Austrian peas, crimson clover and hairy vetch. These plants can fix nitrogen to improve the soil. Contact the WVU Extension office for more information and seeding rates.

This week let’s talk about soil testing the garden and crop fields. September is a great time to soil test your garden, lawn, or agricultural crop fields. Soil testing is the easiest and most reliable method of assessing a soil’s nutrient status. It provides a basis for recommending the correct amount of lime and fertilizer to apply for garden, crops and pastures.

Soil testing also allows an expert to predict the probability of obtaining a yield or growth response to lime and fertilizer application. Soil testing takes the guesswork out of fertilization and is extremely cost effective.

Once you find out what your soil is lacking, now is a good time to add soil amendments such as lime, compost or fertilizer if needed. Fall is a great time to apply agriculture lime to all soils including gardens, lawns, hay fields, pastures and crop fields. This will give it time before next spring to react in the soil to raise the pH, provide calcium and improve the production capacity.

A major effect of liming acid soils is making phosphorus more available to plants. Acid soils causes phosphorus to form insoluble compounds with aluminum and iron. Liming soils with low pH “dissolves” these insoluble compounds, making phosphorus more available for plant uptake.

I always get questions about pelletized lime. Pelletized lime consists of very fine calcitic or dolomitic limestone formed into pellets with a soluble binding agent. There is nothing special about the effectiveness of pelletized lime. It is chemically the same as traditional agricultural lime and neutralizes soil acidity the same exact way. Therefore, the application rate for pelletized lime is the same for agricultural lime to achieve the same effect.

The WVU Soil Test is an important tool Wood County homeowners, gardeners and farmers to utilize produce a great lawn, garden or crop in the field. Soil testing is a free service provided by the West Virginia University Soil Testing Laboratory. As the Wood County Agriculture Extension Agent, I assist people in interpreting soil results and explain how to take accurate samples. Stop in and see us at the Wood County WVU Extension Office (304-424-1960) located in the fourth floor of the Wood County Courthouse.

Getting soil for the sample is not complicated. You collect a thin slice of soil from the top 4 inches of several well-spaced, representative spots in the garden. Then mix them together in a clean plastic pail and let air dry. Never dry the soil in an oven or microwave oven. Fill a zip lock with soil from the pail and mail it to the WVU Soils Lab.

Do not send wet soil, but air dry it on a clean surface in a shady spot before mailing. Not only does wet soil cost more to mail, but your results also will be delayed because the laboratory must still air dry the sample. Do not heat the sample. Send at least 1 cup (a handful) of soil to the laboratory in a plastic bag.

Sample the soil to the depth in which your crops are or will be growing. Remove the organic debris from the soil surface before sampling. For permanent pastures sample the top 2 inches. Hay fields need sampled from the top 4 to 6 inches. For row crops sample the soil to the depth of tillage.

For no-till crops sample the top inch and take a second sample from the depth of 1 to 6 inches. For vegetable gardens and planting beds sample the soil to tillage depth. Finally, sample the top 2 inches in established lawns and turf and the top 1 to 4 inches in new turf plantings.

Soil test submission forms are available at the WVU Extension office, or you can download a copy directly from the WVU Soils Lab website. Two versions of the submission form are available; a print-only version that can be filled out with a pen or pencil or a digital version that can be completed using a computer or tablet.

The WVU Soil Testing Lab provides a basic analysis, including soil pH, phosphorus, potassium, calcium, magnesium and degree of phosphorus saturation. Additional analysis is available. These include organic matter determination (OM), electrical conductivity (EC) and a micronutrient package (MN).

I highly recommend using the WVU Soil Lab for soil testing. Home kits are not nearly as reliable as a source of information. The WVU Soils lab analyzes over 10,000 samples a year, so the results are much more accurate than home kits.

The major categories for soil samples are separated by land use and include home lawns, crops, hay production, pasture, home gardens and specialty crops such as small fruits or fruit trees. A trend we have seen over the last few years is a large increase in the number of food plots deer that is being tested.

The WVU Soil Testing Laboratory has been part of the Davis College of Agriculture, Natural Resources and Design for over 50 years. Led by soil science faculty, the lab follows science-based methods to generate soil test results that are used to generate fertilizer and lime recommendations. Their goal is to provide timely, accurate and scientifically based soil analysis and recommendations to West Virginia residents and other interested parties.

Soil samples taken in late summer and fall are better than those taken in winter through early spring because they come closer to representing the soil’s nutrient status as it affects crops. Avoid taking samples when soil is wet or frozen because it will be difficult to handle and mix them. Do not take soil samples immediately after applying lime or fertilizer; wait several months or even longer if the weather is dry.

Send samples to a soil testing laboratory well before you need the recommendations. Allow about three weeks for the samples to be processed and the results to be sent to you. Please mail your soil in individually marked and labeled zippered bags in either a padded mailing envelope or small box.

Individual bags should contain approximately 1cup of soil from each area tested and have the corresponding information sheet attached to the bags when possible. Send samples to the WVU Soil Testing Lab. The address is on the soil test submission form and on the website.

Another important reason to test soils is to avoid nutrient build or apply fertilizers the soil may not need. A major problem home gardeners may encounter is over fertilized soils from years of adding livestock manures or wood ashes every fall. This can cause a nutrient build up. This may become toxic to plants, and they will have problems taking up nutrients, especially water.

Adding manure every year will cause excessive phosphorus levels in the soil. It is also recommended to compost manure before applying to the garden or apply in the fall and incorporate in the soil to give it time to break down.

Home gardeners need to be cautious about using wood ashes over a long period of time. A little is good, but too much will keep raising the pH of the soil. Adding wood ashes every year to the garden will take the pH well over 7.0. Liming soil to points beyond 7.0 will cause phosphorus to form complexes with calcium or magnesium. It is recommended to maintain the soil pH between 5.5 and 6.8 to reduce these problems

Be sure to indicate on the soil test questionnaires sheet that the crop is for a vegetable garden, agricultural crop field, or a lawn. Your soil test results will also give you results of how much phosphorus, potassium, calcium, magnesium is in your soil. It will give recommendations of how much of each nutrient is needed. When reading your soil test results, one of the most important pieces of information is the soil pH. This indicates whether your soil is the acidic (sour) or alkaline (sweet).

Most plants except for blueberries, rhododendrons and azaleas thrive in a neutral pH between 6.0 and 7.0. In general, acid soils prevent plants from taking up soil nutrients, even when adequate plant nourishment is present. If so, you need to correct the problem by applying lime. Your recommendation sheet will suggesting how much, if any, lime or fertilizer to apply, and other important information. Be cautious. Too much lime, however, often creates problems similar to having too little lime. Lime doesn’t become fully effective until several weeks or even months after application and will react faster if incorporated into the soil.

Another frequent questions from home gardeners is how to improve clay soils, a common here in West Virginia. The answer is simple: organic matter. Clay soils are usually fertile and full of nutrients, but the soil particles are tight, leading to poor drainage and air flow. Livestock manures, compost, leaves mulch and green manure crops (cover crops like cereal rye buckwheat, and hairy vetch) help add organic matter to clay soils and make them more productive. Building raised beds can really help when working with clay soils for growing vegetables and flowers.

Looking for more information? Contact me at the Wood County WVU Extension Office 304-424-1960 or my e-mail jj.barrett@mail.wvu.edu with questions. Good Luck and Happy Gardening!