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 Post subject: soil test and compost
PostPosted: Thu Mar 31, 2011 6:31 pm 
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I have 4 raised bed measuring 2' x 8' and 1' deep. They are all treated the same, fish emulsion last year when fertilized and compost mixed into the soil at the start of the growing season. My composting style is lazy only turning when needing exercise or feeling quilty for neglecting the pile. I add kitchen scrapes, no meat, lots of cut grass clippings, shredded paper and one year my husband raked up the neighbors leaves since we don't have trees. When I add compost to the garden I just dig down to the bottom of the pile until I reach something that resembles dirt and use that. I had a soil sample done and the results came back for one bed:P 6716,K 3410,Ca 1970, Mg 2095. the soil ph is 6.9. This sample was taken in the fall after the sweet potatoes came out. THe other beds were within a normal range. My question is: does using grass clippings as the main ingredient in my compost pile alter the nutrients of the compost and should I not be adding so much grass clippings? I also mulch with grass clipping that have started turning brown. The produce yield is pretty average from year to year. I am also thinking that maybe the results were flawed but would still like to know if using grass clippings is bad since we mow 2 acres and a mulching blade is very expensive. thanks for any and all input. :?


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PostPosted: Fri Apr 22, 2011 5:56 am 
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Location: Odenville,Alabama
Everything you mentioned sounds great to me!

Keep in mind that compost buffers local soil pH around the rhizosphere of crops. If you are adding plenty of organic matter to these beds, the benefical aerobic soil microbes will regulate and maintain the balance of nutrients and native pH needed per needs of each crop.

Good organic soil health is always a combination of good soil chemistry, biology, and physics.
The soil organisms and other beneficial organisms (the biology) will maintain the proper soil chemistry, and the proper soil loam (the physics) over time, which is really what all gardeners want and need.

Happy Gardening!

_________________
The entire Kingdom of God can be totally explained as an Organic Garden (Mark 4:26)
William Cureton


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