What kind of soil test should I get? - Ask Extension
Hello! I was hoping you could give me some advice on which soil test would be appropriate for my home garden. I converted my front yard, which was a l...
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What kind of soil test should I get? #891539
Asked January 13, 2025, 4:15 PM EST
Hello! I was hoping you could give me some advice on which soil test would be appropriate for my home garden. I converted my front yard, which was a lawn and bark dust, into a garden at the beginning of 2024. I have mixture of raised beds and also grow things at ground level. We brought in a large load of "garden soil mix" from a local landscape company, as well as additional bags of compost, top soil, and raised bed soil mix. We also mulched everything with straw prior to last year's growing season. 2024 turned out to be a very productive year, with the expected snags a new garden inevitably experiences. Now that it has a year under it's belt, I am curious as to what I am working with this year. There seems to be A LOT of options out there, with a big price range. What would your recommendation be? What is the most cost effective but useful components to test for? Thank you so much for your time, and happy growing!
Washington County Oregon
Expert Response
Thanks for your question, Cathryn. If you had a successful garden outcome last year (healthy fruits/vegetables, no indication of diseases or insect infestations), then what you probably need testing is a simple nutrient test. This is because, of the two most common vegetable garden tests, pH (soil acidity) and nutrients (necessary chemicals), the nutrients tend to be depleted--and soil acidity remains relatively the same.
There are a couple of relatively inexpensive labs to do this testing. One is A & L (in Sherwood; https://al-labs-west.com/); the other is the one at OSU (https://cropandsoil.oregonstate.edu/sites/agscid7/files/crop-soil/assets/fy23_fee_book_mar_-_june.pdf).
Note that the (probably excellent) mixture of compost, etc., that you already have may well have supplied enough nutrients to support healthy gardening for several years, making testing (as yet) unnecessary. Refreshing annually with well-composted organic material may be all you need--at the same or less cost. And turning in the "rotting" healthy foliage from last year's crop will automatically return nutrients. (Mother Nature's oldest form of recycling!) Your call. Good luck!
There are a couple of relatively inexpensive labs to do this testing. One is A & L (in Sherwood; https://al-labs-west.com/); the other is the one at OSU (https://cropandsoil.oregonstate.edu/sites/agscid7/files/crop-soil/assets/fy23_fee_book_mar_-_june.pdf).
Note that the (probably excellent) mixture of compost, etc., that you already have may well have supplied enough nutrients to support healthy gardening for several years, making testing (as yet) unnecessary. Refreshing annually with well-composted organic material may be all you need--at the same or less cost. And turning in the "rotting" healthy foliage from last year's crop will automatically return nutrients. (Mother Nature's oldest form of recycling!) Your call. Good luck!
