soil test

There’s still time to get your soil samples to the N.C. Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services before Thanksgiving and take advantage of free testing. Samples received after November 30, 2021 through March 31, 2022—the peak soil testing season—are charged an analysis fee of $4 per sample. 

Get soil test kits at the Extension office
Soil test boxes, sample information forms, and instructions are available outside the front door at the Buncombe County Cooperative Extension office, 49 Mount Carmel Road, Asheville. 

Taking the sample
The instruction sheet, A Guide to Soil Sampling—A Soil Test Is Only as Good as the Soil Sample Taken!, explains how to take your sample. Using a clean, stainless steel or chrome-plated trowel, dig about 6 inches deep in 4 or 5 spots in the testing area. Place the soil samples in a clean plastic bucket or bowl and mix well. If the soil is wet, wait for it to dry out before mixing. Fill the soil test box to the fill line and label the box. 

Where to sample
Take several soil samples from different areas of your yard and use a separate box for each sample. Suggested sample areas include: lawn, vegetable garden, flowerbeds, landscape trees and shrubs, roses, azaleas, rhododendrons, blueberries, and other fruits and berries. 

Complete the sample information form and mail
Complete an information form for each soil sample, note any lime applications you’ve made in the last 12 months, and indicate the Lawn and Garden Planting Code for the area sampled. You’ll also need to provide an email address to receive your results.

Place the information form on top of your soil test boxes in a cardboard box and mail to the address listed on the form. It is helpful to keep a record to remind yourself of where you took each sample.

After the lab has tested the soil samples, you will receive a test report with recommendations for fertilizer and pH amendment. During the winter it takes about one to two months to receive your test results.

More information
– N.C. Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services website:  https://www.ncagr.gov/agronomi/sthome.htm
– Soil Testing for Lawns and Gardens by Charlotte Glenn, State Coordinator, NC Extension Master Gardener Program
Horticultural Science – NC State University

The N.C. Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (NCDA&CS) lab has scaled back its testing, making home soil testing another casualty of the COVID-19 pandemic. But, homeowners may be able to use the recommendations from a previous year’s test to maintain their yards and gardens.  If you had a soil analysis from 2017 to 2020, those results are still available and useful.

An April 8 press release by the NCDA&CS Agronomic Services Division provides the following guidance:

“At this time, the lab is accepting only diagnostic soil samples from agricultural clients,” said David Hardy, Soil Lab section chief. “Generally, soil testing is advised every 2 to 3 years. If you submitted soil samples to be tested in this timeframe, you can still use the recommendations from these past reports.”

“If lime was applied based on a [prior] report, it is unlikely that additional lime is needed for the upcoming growing season,” Hardy said. “Routine application of lime is never advised since soil pH may be raised too high. Using the same fertilizer recommendations [from a prior report] will provide satisfactory results for homeowners wanting to fertilize this year.”

Our Buncombe County Extension Master Gardener Helpline can help you get access to reports for soil tests done from 2017 to 2020.  They can also explain the reports and interpret the results.  To retrieve a copy of your past soil test report, give the Garden Helpline a call or send an email.

Two ways to contact the Garden Helpline
Call 828-255-5522
Email questions and photos to buncombemg@gmail.com

Garden Helpline hours
Mondays and Wednesdays, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Fridays, 10 a.m. to noon

More information
Soil Tests:  What They Tell You and What They Don’t!, May 15, 2019 blog
https://www.buncombemastergardener.org/?s=soil+test