very acid soil... Am I stuffed?

[vertangie]

I just got a little ph, water and light meter of ebay (bargain for a fiver when you consider how much those soil test kits cost over time).

I've gone and stabbed it in various parts of my garden and the soil varies from 3.5 to 4 on average with 1 teeny patch of the scale (acid wise) and the edge of the beds leaning towards alkaline.

Our garden was once a growing field and the soil is good an rich but am I going to be a bit stuffed having soil that's that acidic.

I'm planning on growing peas, beans an courgettes in one patch, and 1 did have a courgette plant sucessfully last year, the other seeds never came up but I've got 5 seedlings in pots ready to go out which I'll start hardening very soon.

In the other patch I was going to grow parsnips and if possible savoy cabbages but Cabbages don't like soil that acid do they? Could explain why I had no seedlings last year.

The soil does retain water well but it does drain too, typical cumbrian heavy loam I think (doesn't quite fit any of the descriptions), and it's not been treated with any chemicals at all for at least 3 years, probably a lot longer.

So my question is what would you do with that kind of soil. Do I need to lime it.

I've got about half a bin bag of wood ash from our winter fires stored in the shed which I believe is good for making soil more alkaline. Anyone ever tried that?

Thanks for your advice people, I'm not used to being so ignorant but unless you ask the questions you never learn.

Angie

[Digger-07]

I would be a bit suspicious of the readings you are getting. If stuff is growing well on the land the readings could be wrong? If you have concrete or limestone paving then the soil near them would be slightly more alkaline but I would try to test some of the soil with a cheap alternative before I trust the readings you have.

If you need to make it more alkaline then ground limestone is the best option as it's longer lasting than other forms of lime (and safer to use). Wood ash will help but I would concentrate that near to the plants rather than over the whole plot.

[TEB]

Not an answer but an alternative - can you put raised beds on it.
Lime is best bet to get the soil levels to alkaline and I have seen people put a handfull in the planting holes for their brassicas at the time of planting. I have used wood ash but its too early to see any results. You obviously need to keep away from peat based compost as well. If you decide to dig in lime or other medium and want to grow brassicas you will need to firm the bed down well afterwards as they require v.firm soil.
Good luck

[Cutecumber]

Gosh! That does sound very acidic.

Just to check - you did follow the instructions with the meter, didn't you? Sorry to sound patronising, but it's always worth making sure you really do have a problem. It might still be worth buying a one-off liquid testing kit to verify it, just in case. Have you checked with any neighbours, too?

There are some crops, take blueberries for example, which really like acid conditions, but you're right about brassicas. The onion family are not keen, either.

I think I might get some top soil for immediate use in a small area, and treat the rest with calcified seaweed (or lime etc) to raise the pH generally. It can take a while to work - months and even years - and you need to keep measuring the pH to check that it's working. It's not a one off thing.

[shirlthegirl43]

I would recommend buying a small test kit and checking your ph meter against that. I used a meter last year and also thought I had very acid soil. Turned out on checking with a proper test that I have neutral soil!

Take a deep breath and do the testing the old fashioned way. After you have your readings from that you will know where you stand and you can adjust things as required. Also, I don't think you need to check the soil every year thereafter as you would know what you had put in and what you grew. Good luck.

[Paulottie]

I would certainly lime and spread woodash. It's a bit late really but it will be ok. Do not lime where parsnips(and other roots) are going- it gives them scab. Lime heavily where brassicas are going, they love it and it helps prevent clubroot.

You are only as 'stuffed' as you want to be. You seem to have an excellent loam, sounds like you need to plan a 3 yr. rotation. lime; manure and mulch;nothing and so on.

A couple of points: Ash is often 'weathered' first (ie: not in shed); The cheap meters are not always as accurate as testkits; It is unlikely acid soil would stop germination -just long term health and It is good to have a protected seedbed or modules to raise plants -it helps stop them getting munched.

good luck

[Alice]

I would retest the soil by another means Angie. The reading seems extreme. Even in parts of my garden where lots of peat has been added the readings are nothing like that.

[TPeers]

I would consider cleaning the probe on the tester and also getting one of the little liquid kits - that reading does sound wrong! Then again what plants in your general area do notably well? If it is all rododendrons, camilias and assorted heathers and lings you might well have a problem!

You could try testing your tester - the ph value of a lemon is around 2.7, soap is alkaline therefore over 7. That should give you an idea whether or not it is acurate.

[carlseawolf]

put the probe into fresh water that is normally around ph 7, to test the accuracy of the tester.

[Snadger]

On the plus side its a damm site easier to make an acid soil ready for planting than it is to tone down an alkaline soil!

I would just lime the area for brassicas now and it should be ready for planting in a couple of weeks.

The rest should be fine for this year, tatties will love it!

If you can get a hold of spent mushroom compost cheaply this will help turn the soil alkaline.

[vertangie]

Interstingly I didn't trust the readings. It did say ph 7 for tap water and apple juice came in at around 5.

The woodland around here is covered in rhododendrons and the fells do have a fair bit of heather. So maybe it is really acid.

Fortunately I'm really not that bothered about getting brasicas or cabbage this year. Next year I want to try spring greens.

Do mushrooms prefer alkaline soil then as we have a few growing in various bits of woodland around here. My shallots didn't grow last year but I think the ones my mum sent up were already rotting and wild garlic grows in abundance around here, the woods are carpeted with it (I've been eating a lot of it, great with mushrooms).

I will do a another kit test, I did one last year but it never separated out properly so I wasn't 100% sure whether it really was orange or just muddy

I recall it definately indicated acid but not that acid.

I have recently added some fresh compost so that may have an effect too.

I'm growing my tomatoes in grow bags though so at least they should be affected. I did get some courgettes and parsnips last year, by solitary pea plant got eaten but I'm using measures this year (copper) and planting loads of seeds to see if they will take.

Thanks everyone.