ArticlesReader.com Menu
Newest Articles
Most Viewed Articles
ArticlesReader.com RSS
Submit Article
Login
Signup
Search the articles

Articles Main Categories
Advice
Animals
Automobiles
Business
Career
Communications
Computer Programming
Computers
Entertainment
Environment
Family
Fashion
Finance
Food
Health & Medical
Home & Garden
Humor
Internet Business
Internet Marketing
Legal
Leisure & Recreation
Marketing
Other
Politics
Reference & Education
Religion
Self Improvement
Sports
Technology & Science
Travel
Writing
Subscribe
Receive alert message from us when new articles submitted to our site for free.

Enter your name

Enter your email

Syndicate

















Related Products
Home::Kathy Gates

Soil PH And Its Effect On Your Garden

Author : Francis Kilkelly
As you may have observed from your gardening experiences plants can be fussy things. The right location, amount of sunlight and 101 other factors influence your plant's growing ability. One factor which is very beneficial in understanding before putting that new plant into the earth is soil pH.



What is Soil pH?



Let's get all scientific for a moment and learn what pH is. In chemistry pH is a measure of how acidic or alkaline a solution is. Okay chemistry lesson over. Basically soil pH is a measure of how acidic or alkaline your soil is. Soil pH is measured on a scale of 1 to 14. If your soil has a pH value of less than 7 then you have acidic soil. On the other hand if your soil has a pH value of greater than 7 then you have alkaline soil. A pH value of 7 is neutral, meaning you have neither acidic or alkaline soil.



The Effect of Soil pH on Plants



Knowing the pH value of your soil before planting is very important as it has a direct influence on the health of the plant. Each plant has its own recommended soil pH value range. The reason for this is that soil pH effects the availability of nutrients within the soil and plants have different nutrient needs. For example the nutrient nitrogen, a very important plant nutrient, is readily available in soil when the pH value is above 5.5. Similarily the nutrient phosphorous is available when the pH value is between 6 and 7. If a plant is placed into the wrong kind of soil it will be lacking in nutrients that it needs which will promote disease. In general the best pH value range for soil is approximately 6 or 7 as this is the range in which most nutrients can be readily available.



Finding Out pH of Soil



Finding out the pH of soil is usually a trivial matter and the kits to do so should be available at most good garden centres. Usually a pH testing kit will include a small container / test tube, testing solution and a color chart. A sample of soil is taken from your garden, placed into the container / test tube and a few drops of testing solution are added. The container is then shaken and left for a certain period of time. The color of the sample in the container is then compared against the color chart to determine the pH value of the soil. Note that if you want to determine the soil pH of an large area it may be a good idea to take soil samples from many different locations, combine the samples and then perform the test on the combined sample.



A quick way to find out the pH of an area is to look to see if there are any house hydrangeas (Hydrangea macrophylla) already growing in the area. If so observe the color of its flowers. A soil pH of 6 or below will produce blue flowers while a soil pH of 6.8 or higher will produce pink flowers.



How to Make Soil More Alkaline (Increase pH)



If your soil is acidic or slightly acidic you can take steps to make it more alkaline to accommodate the plants you want to put there. You can make your soil more alkaline (increase its pH value) by adding a form of lime. Lime is a compound of calcium or calcium and magnesium. It is usually applied in the form of ground agricultural limestone, burnt lime or hydrated lime (slaked lime). The smaller the limestone particles then the quicker your soil will become more alkaline. For this reason hydrated lime will offer the quickest performance because it is slightly soluble in water so it can permeate the soil quicker and reduce acidity faster.



Increasing the pH of your soil is not an overnight process and it is best to allow 2-3 months to allow the lime to neutralize the acidity of the soil acidity.



How to Make Soil More Acidic (Decrease pH)



Some ornamental plants and fruit plants like blueberries require an acidic soil. To make your soil more acidic (decrease its pH value) you can use either aluminium sulphate or sulphur. Aluminium sulphate is the quickest acting as it will increase the acidity as soon as it dissolves into the soil. The downsides are though that its effects can be short term and it is possible to over-apply it.



The more recommended but slower way to increase your soil pH is to use sulphur. Sulphur converts to sulphuric acid with the help of bacteria in the soil but this takes time depending on factors like the presence of bacteria, texture of the soil and moisture levels. This could take months if conditions are not ideal.



Conclusion



Remember to always take into account soil pH when deciding what to plant in your soil. If you do not know what the pH of your soil is then test your soil and if needs be take steps mentioned earlier to change the pH value over time. Best of luck!


Article Source: http://www.articledashboard.com





Francis Kilkelly runs a great gardening community at www.gardenstew.com/ containing forums and gardening blogs ( www.gardenstew.com/blogs.php ).
Original Article Location: www.gardenstew.com/blog/e3-9-soil-ph-and-its-effect-on-your-garden.html





Spam emails More free articles

Related articles


  1. How To Save Your Fruit Tree Blossoms From A Spring Freeze.
  2. Planting Roses - Tips And Ideas To Ensure Beautiful Results
  3. Helpful Ideas For Designing A Flower Garden
  4. Fertilizing Your Flowers And The Importance Of Choosing The Right Flower Food
  5. Choosing The Perfect Flowers For Summer
  6. The Best Flowers For Spring
  7. The Great History Of Roses
  8. How to choose your garden furniture and make it last
  9. Garden Leaf Blower Maintenance
  10. Garden Composting Tips- The Art of Composting
  11. Types Of Lawn Mower Batteries
  12. Mulching Benefits / Organic And Inorganic Mulch Types
  13. Soil Basics - Creating Fertile, Healthy Soil
  14. Everyone Needs A Spaghetti Garden
  15. Fall Planting
  16. Soil PH And Its Effect On Your Garden
  17. Caring For Christmas Trees
  18. It's Time To Select Your Snow Blower
  19. How to make your landscape look good.
  20. Introduction to bonsai tree growing: an overview
  21. How to Grow Wildflowers
  22. Make Your Fresh Cut Roses Last Longer!
  23. Bonsai Soil And Additives
  24. Tips For Buying Lawn Tractors
  25. Gifts for the Gardener
More related feeds
Kingfisher landscaping blog | Soil acidity | Kingfisher Landscaping
To satisfy plants that crave acidity (often called “acid-loving” plants), acidity can be raised (meaning soil pH will be lowered) by using commercial fertilizers containing ammonium-N, e.g., in fertilizers sold specifically for azaleas ...

Soil pH and its Effect on Your Garden
Knowing the pH value of your soil before planting is very important as it has a direct influence on the health of the plant. Each plant has its own recommended soil pH value range. The reason for this is that soil pH effects the ...

Questions are meant to be answered. This is why we hope that all ...
Simply insert water in the reservoir and fill with your fave flower. Perfect for spotlighting single small blooms! Made in the USA. Price: 39.99 A Featured garden hilton inn Article Soil PH And Its Effect On Your Garden ...

Gardening: Organic Gardening: | My Backyark
Perhaps the best way to defend against insects is to make your garden enticing to insect predators, such as ladybugs, birds, frogs, and lizards. You can do this by keeping a water source nearby or by growing plants that attract insects ...

N def or nute burn? Newb needs help! - The Garden's Cure
Really a little more worm casings in the soil, and you wouldn't need any nutes yet also. And ph your nutrients for soil to like 5.8 to 6.2 to get rid of that ph problem. Now I'd just give them one or 2 waterings of ph adjusted water at ...

How to grow the perfect lawn - DIY - Renovate - realestate.com.au
Use your pH Soil Test Kit to check the soil acidity (Fig. 3). Many soils are too acid (sour) for good growth and an acidity reading below 6.0 means the soil should be treated with garden lime to correct it. Apply the lime at about 200gm ...

The Art of Gardening & Creating Heaven At Your Doorstep | Content ...
Before creating a successful and state-of-art garden, work out on a few fine points. Such as:. 1.Check the soil quality (loamy, sandy, clayey or humusy) and its pH level. 2.Determine the East, West, North and South of your gardening ...

Hydroponics Gardening | Own Home Style .com
Whenever your hydroponics garden is located indoors, the most suitable temperature is between 71 to 76 degrees Fahrenheit. Of course, this temperature may change depending on the different forms of plant you’re processing, e.g. tropical ...

How to Test your Garden Soil for Acidity Levels
Its better to test your soil each year and make the indicated adjustments gradually. In addition to lime, adding hardwood ash, bone meal, crushed marble or crushed oyster shells will also help to raise the soil pH. ...

Creating your 'Green' Garden - going green, gardening, greener ...
Test your soil for pH and fertility. Your local garden center or state university can analyze and recommend enhancements. Make sure you have sufficient topsoil to support the garden, supplementing with compost and organic products to ...

 


 

2007 articlesreader.com - All Rights Reserved