How to take soil samples
Soil management has three aims:
To grow crops for profit, to maintain or improve soil fertility and to avoid contaminating the environment and water with nutrients or other chemicals.
We help you by assessing your soil nutrient status, to give you the tools to establish the base for a health an productive soil.
We will support you to bring your soil back into balance and your soil fertility status will improve to gain healthier plants and better production.
To take a soil sample :
- Take sample from sites representative of the greater part of the area. Avoid sampling unusual areas such as hedges, fences, troughs, gates, direct under the tree etc.
- Sample to the correct depth :
- Pasture
7.5 to 10.0 cm - Arable land and Orchards
15 cm - Turf
7.5 cm
- Sample on a grid or zigzag pattern, taking at least 20 cores.
- We need 400 to 500 g of soil without worms or roots etc. for analysis.
- Use clean equipment and plastic sample bags.
- Avoid contamination of samples, e.g. manure, fertiliser, etc.
- Label sample bag with Name, Date, sample place, use of soil, with a permanent marker.
- Send sample to laboratory as soon after collection as possible.