This one's interesting. What's your location and what type of grass do you have? The soil either shows severe over-liming or a naturally high-lime soil. The higher sodium level implies the latter, but...

The grass type will determine the phosphorus setting. Most nothern lawns and some southern lawns require more fiddling here than a few southern ones do.

The EC of nearly 15 says you have a good soil that holds lots of resources. Exactly what it is, you'd have to do a jar test.

pH 8.0: Extremely high, but a lawn will still grow in this.

Organic matter 3.55: In the good range, although I'd still try to push this much higher due to your high pH (and consequent very high calcium,

Phosphorus 45: Short to extremely short due to the pH locking it up, but it's going to depend on your grass type. Let me know on that.

Calcium 81%: High, but certainly not toxic or anything like that. We'll want to avoid lime and most calcium sources, however, simply because you don't need them.

Magnesium 12%: Optimal. Again, we'll be avoiding sources of these to avoid pushing up your pH any further.

Potassium 1.39%: Lower than I like (I prefer potassium levels of 3% or a little more for most lawns, and I go much higher in my own).

Sodium 1.86%: Nudging a little high, but not a problem for grasses. This goes into the "keep an eye on" column and if it continues to head up we do something about it then.

Most trace elements: Good to excellent, with no adjustments required. I'd be hesitant to adjust most of these with the pH that high and with two major nutrients requiring adjustment anyway.

Iron 191: Very low for your pH, but not deficient. Lawns are likely to be a paler green than they would otherwise be. High pH binds up iron, and at that pH even chelated sources of iron simply won't work. Fortunately, using MIlorganite over time will work and add a lot of iron to the soil over time. Over the shorter term, you can spray iron (Bonide iron or 4 oz ferrous sulfate per thousand square feet) for color if you really want to.

Current Recommendations:

Now: Let me know your locale and grass type.

September, as soon as you can: Apply any starter fertilizer at bag rate. Starter fertilizers have large middle numbers, like 20-27-5 or 18-24-5 or that range. Get the cheapest, the differences in that middle number aren't enough to matter and bag rate will target around 1 pound phosphorus per thousand square feet.

September, one good rain or irrigation post the starter Locate potassium sulfate (most garden shops will order it for you, as will many landscapers, but this is not a common nutrient). Apply at 2 pounds per thousand square feet. Buy plenty, you're going to need it.

I'll hold off on October recommendations until I know your locale and grass type; I don't want to risk ground freeze too early, nor overdoing things for your grass.

Thanks so much morpheuspa! Very thorough interpretation. Really appreciate it! I live in Northeastern Ohio in between Cleveland and Akron. Also, the soil was tested under 3 month old kentucky bluegrass sod which is mixed with hybrid fescue that I never really wanted. I applied Milorganite around Labor day. Do you think I should still shoot for the starter fertilzer right away? The grass really greened up after the Milorganite, I mean huge difference. From a pale green to a deep dark green. I will try and locate potassium sulfate. Also, I sampled at 6" per Logan Labs. I noticed that some other forums recommend sampling at 3-4" for lawns. Is this an issue? Thanks again for all your help.

>>I noticed that some other forums recommend sampling at 3-4" for lawns. Is this an issue?

I adjusted the numbers accordingly, so no problem, and we can safely assume that the upper levels are pretty similar. Next year, sample at the 4" level--numbers will no longer be quite so similar.

>>Do you think I should still shoot for the starter fertilzer right away?

Yes, but hold off a week. The iron in the Milo hit and the grass greened. You can apply a synthetic (the starter) and an organic (the Milorganite) pretty close to each other as the Milorganite has a much smaller level of quickly available nitrogen and the starter is targeting phosphorus more than nitrogen. Younger lawns are hungry lawns (just like teenagers), so more nitrogen than normal the first fall is not a problem!

Here's the rest of the recommendations, with September adjusted for your Milorganite. This may seem like a lot of starter fertilizer, and it is, but at your pH the target phosphoric acid is 300 pounds per acre; you have 47. We have a long way to go.

September 13: Apply any starter fertilizer at bag rate. Starter fertilizers have large middle numbers, like 20-27-5 or 18-24-5 or that range. Get the cheapest, the differences in that middle number aren't enough to matter and bag rate will target around 1 pound phosphorus per thousand square feet.

September, one good rain or irrigation post the starter (call it September 20th): Locate potassium sulfate (most garden shops will order it for you, as will many landscapers, but this is not a common nutrient). Apply at 2 pounds per thousand square feet. Buy plenty, you're going to need it.

October 1: Apply Milorganite if you want. If not, apply starter a second time at bag rate.

October 14: If you applied Milorganite on October 1, apply the starter here. If you applied the starter on October 1, you can apply Milorganite now if you want.

October 21: Apply 2 pounds of potassium sulfate per thousand square feet.

Whenever Top Growth Stops: Winterize the lawn with any good high nitrogen, low phosphorus fertilizer (don't use starter as it won't work in before winter and may run off, which is ecologically terrible).

April 1, 2015: Apply 2 pounds of potassium sulfate per thousand square feet.

May 1, 2015: Apply 2 pounds of potassium sulfate per thousand square feet. If you want to apply Milorganite at this time, that's great--but don't apply starter as synthetics shouldn't go this early.

Memorial Day, 2015: Apply starter fertilizer at bag rate as your spring feeding.

Labor Day, 2015: Time for a new soil test, but you can apply starter fertilizer at bag rate just after you take the samples for testing. Let us know if you do this because the numbers may need to take that into account.

Thanks again Morpheuspa! I found a 50lb bag of starter at tractor supply for $15! I will pick it up on Friday. I also found some potassium sulfate at a local John Deer Lesco supplier. So I will be ready to go. I will start with the starter this Saturday.

Another quick question. It is a bad thing to be dumping a lot of synthetic starter fertilizer if I'm trying to go the organic route? I think I may not have a choice considering how low my available phosphorous is. Thanks

>>Another quick question. It is a bad thing to be dumping a lot of synthetic starter fertilizer if I'm trying to go the organic route? I think I may not have a choice considering how low my available phosphorous is. Thanks

It's not a problem unless you're a purist. I'm not a purist. You can mix the two, synthetic and organic, until the soil is up to snuff, then go strictly organic after that except for adjustments as required.

You don't even have to cut back the organics at all--they play perfectly well with the synthetics. And when starting an organic program, as you are, this can get you over the transitional hump invisibly. Your soil is adjusting to the organics while still getting synthetic nitrogen that it's used to. Once you discontinue the synthetics, the bacteria and fungi are already up to snuff and processing the organics efficiently.

Not to mention that there's no fast, reliable method of adding most elements organically (except for carbon). In the case of phosphorus, Milorganite has less than a tenth what the starter does--so it would take ten times longer. Better sources of organic phosphorus are hideously slow. And unless you can get your hands on ashed banana skins, there's no real good source of organic potassium at all!

So for right now, bite the bullet and use the synthetics. Later on, the the organics work better when the soil is balanced.

This post was edited by morpheuspa on Wed, Sep 10, 14 at 22:33