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Wed, Jun 6, 12 at 2:40
| Would anyone happen to know of an inexpensive and reliable ph tester? Something that's UNDER $40 (although $20 would be better!) & preferably semi-convenient to find? Or is that just asking for too much?
I'm pretty new to gardening and Home Depot & Lowes carry ph testers that have nothing but bad reviews; at least the reviews I've read so far. PLEASE HELP!! |
Follow-Up Postings:
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- Posted by squirejohn 4 VT (My Page) on Wed, Jun 6, 12 at 4:32
| The Cornell pH Test Kit gives fairly reliable results but useing it is "state of the art" requiring a minimum amount of reagent to get reliabe readings. It's the colorimeter type, is sold through Cornell University Ext. Serv. and costs about $20. |
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| Even if there were such a thing as a reliable pH testor or test kit that cost less then several hundred dollars they still will not tell you important information such as the balance between Calcium and Magnesium. Even if your soils pH were between 6.2 and 6.8 it could have an imbalance of Ca to Mg which will cause many problems with plants that need Magnesium to properly utilize Calcium and vice versa. |
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- Posted by albert_135 Sunset 2 or 3 (My Page) on Sat, Jun 9, 12 at 12:55
| I agree that there is much, much more to soil pH than the number one gets from the test. I think the number may not always be completely worthless but it may often be of little value. If you just want the number the least expensive way I know to get it, short of finding a free lab somewhere, is to shake some soil up with water, let this sit for a few days shaking it daily, filter it through a coffee filter and test the water with an aquarium test strip. This should give you a guesstimate between 6.2 and 8.4 for about 25 cents. |
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| An even simpler, and maybe cheaper, test for soil pH is to take some soil and wet it, preferably with distilled water, and put some Baking Soda on that soil. If the Baking Soda fizzes you have acidic soil. Vinegar, applied the same way, can indicate an alkalin soil. Neither really tells you much, however. |
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