Soil Sampling

My soils professor (Elmer Counce) was fond of saying, “all soils are good soils, some are just more productive than others”.

The most productive soils on your farm will produce more tonage of wildlife food than your less productive soils. Examples of your most productive soils are well drained bottom land and upland soils where the topsoil is still present and the internal drainage is classified as well drained. The bottom land is easier to identify than well drained upland for the average food plotter. However, the topsoil should be easy to recognize as it will usually be a darker brown or black and the subsoil will be something different.

All this is to say if you can identify your most productive soils even if by trail and error these are the places to plant corn and alfalfa. The fact is you can fertilize the soils a little heavier and apply about 10”% more seed and they will produce more tonnage per acre than your less productive soils.

Soil Testing:

Take soil from about 20 spots per acre from the surface to about 6″ deep and put in a bucket. Mix thoroughly and put part of this in a sandwich bag and label with your name and a field number or other identification. Take the samples randomnly by zig zagging across the field.
You can buy a soil auger or just use a shovel or pick.
Take the samples to a soil lab or mail to us in a box. Call us and we will give you instructions for doing this or complete the contact us page and send your phone number.

Picture of soil augers and other tools coming shortly.