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  • From: "Dave Bennett" <dbennett AT micoks.net>
  • To: "market farming" <market-farming AT franklin.oit.unc.edu>
  • Subject: Re: Organic Fertilizer ?s
  • Date: Wed, 17 May 2000 13:32:00 -0500


The form I get back from K*State has spaces for all of the information you
discuss, but it is mostly left blank. I just get:

Soil pH
Effect CaCO3 LBS/AC
Avail P ppm
Exch K ppm

Is this enough to make an truly informed decision or should I pursue a
comprehensive analysis? My concern is that nothing has taken place on this
land for over 20 years & I don't want to fight something later that can be
corrected now.

"Peg Cook" <pegcook AT northnet.org> wrote:
__________
>Dave,
>The first thing I do when I have completed a soil analysis is to (1) Check
>the pH. Is the pH within the proper growing range for the I will be making
>recommendaitons for? (2) I check the % Base Saturation of Calcium,
>Magnesium and Potassium and use this as a "guideline" in seeing how balanced
>or unbalanced the soil SYSTEM is. (3) Next, I look at the % Organic Matter,
>Cation Exchange Capacity (C.E.C.) and the Estimated Nitrogen Release (ENR),
>which is calculated from the % Organic Matter to give an "idea" of how much
>Nitrogen would become available during the growing season. This is a figure
>that I also look at to see if the soil SYSTEM might becoming overloaded with
>Nitrogen, as well. (4) Next, I look at the actual nutrient levels of N, P,
>K, SO4 to see how low they actually are. Notice up to this point I have not
>even mentioned anything about the crop I will be making recommendations for!
>(5) After looking at the nutrient levels, then, I look to see what type of
>crop is going to be grown. Different crops do require different nutrient
>needs, but, the crop needs to be able to extract that nutrient WHEN it needs
>it for its specific growth purpose. So, the main thing to keep in mind is
>that the "soil system is a continual chemical reaction going on" with the
>help of soil moisture and mircoorganisms, etc. So, as long as the soil
>system is kept within a good "balance", then, you can provide the proper
>nutrients to produce the crop you need.
>
>The next thing to consider is the "quality" of your crop. In other words,
>flavor and palatablity of vegetables and fruit are going to rate higher than
>pasture for your sheep. The best way that I have found to check for crop
>quality is by using a refractometer (brix) meter which measures the sugar
>level in a plant. The higher the brix, the better the quality of crop.
>
>The main reason I test for SO4 is that Sulfates help raise protein content
>in plants, thus, raising the sugar level (or brix).
>
>I also test for Aluminum and use it as another indicator to see if heavy
>metals could be a problem in a soil. Also, Aluminum is toxic to plant
>health and creates a lot of little sutle changes in crops that occur over a
>period of time that you might not otherwise notice.
>
>Finally, my main philosophy in working with agronomics is: "To optimize
>nutrient management by balancing the soil system". It seems to keep working
>after doing this work for 29 years.
>
>I know this is very long, but, I hope it helps answer your questions.
>
>Peg Cook
>Cook's Consulting
>Lowville, NY.
>
>pegcook AT northnet.org
>
>----- Original Message -----
>From: Dave Bennett <dbennett AT micoks.net>
>To: market farming <market-farming AT franklin.oit.unc.edu>
>Sent: Tuesday, May 16, 2000 9:45 AM
>Subject: Re: Organic Fertilizer ?s
>
>
>> I've been studying soil balance & besides NPK it looks like calcium,
>magnesium, & sulphur are other major components. The issue I'm running into
>is finding out what "balanced" is for each situation.
>>
>> For example, I have vegetable prodution, orchard, & pasture for sheep. Can
>these all have the same "balance" requirements for their very different end
>crops & uses?
>>
>> "Peg Cook" <pegcook AT northnet.org> wrote:
>> __________
>> >Dave,
>> >Keep in mind that the numbers that come out of the County Extension
>Office
>> >are for "actual" N, P, and K. These numbers do not indicate whether to
>use
>> >a "chemical" fertilizer or an "organic" fertilizer.
>> >
>> >Ava did a great job in her posting explaining this to you. I was very
>> >impressed that she also included SO4!!! However, these numbers do not
>often
>> >tell if the soil "system" is in balance. When I do a soil test, I like
>to
>> >see FIRST how balanced the soil system is. On my soil test reports I
>> >include % Base Saturation for Ca, Mg, and K as well as % Organic Matter
>and
>> >the Cation Exchange Capacity (C.E.C.). I use ALL of these factors to
>> >determine if the soil "system" is in or out of balance! After looking at
>> >that, then, I look to see what nutrients are deficient. Then, I can give
>my
>> >Customer either an organic or chemical recommendation or both, depending
>on
>> >what they ask for. Keep in mind that most land-grant colleges do not
>test
>> >for % Base Saturation and C.E.C.
>> >
>> >I base all of my soil test recommendations on "Optimizing Nutrient
>> >Management by Balancing the Soil System." If you have a healthy soil
>> >"system", you will have healthy crops.
>> >
>> >Again, Ava did a very good job of explaining N, P, and K.
>> >
>> >Hope this helps!
>> >
>> >Peg Cook, Agronomist
>> >Cook's Consulting
>> >Lowville, NY
>> >
>> >pegcook AT northnet.org
>> >
>> >----- Original Message -----
>> >From: Dave Bennett <dbennett AT micoks.net>
>> >To: market farming <market-farming AT franklin.oit.unc.edu>
>> >Sent: Monday, May 15, 2000 7:06 PM
>> >Subject: Organic Fertilizer ?s
>> >
>> >
>> >> Over the past few months our County Extension Office has been doing
>soil
>> >analyses for free. (!) Typically these come back with recommendations
>like
>> >"8 - 10 # of 13-13-13 per 1000 sq ft".
>> >>
>> >> Has anyone developed, or seen, some kind of "translation" of this kind
>of
>> >report into a straightforward organic matter application?
>> >>
>> >> * * *
>> >>
>> >> If I take a box of Blood Meal labeled 12-0-0 & mix it with a box of
>Bone
>> >Meal labeled 0-10-0 have I created a batch of 12-10-0?
>> >>
>> >> Thanks.
>> >>
>> >>
>> >>
>> >> Dave
>> >>
>> >> ---
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>> >>
>> >
>> >
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>>
>>
>> Dave
>>
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>
>
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>


Dave




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