local ag extension office should be able to help you out

The biggest issue is no destination point on the acres we hunt one cabin across the road has a large grassy lawn the other place some thicker lowland they like, several of the properties on the road are not used or even visited at all.

Lots of bedding areas off of the place that we hunt it’s mostly oak hardwood ridges the acorn crops the last few years has been impressive. He’s just trying to attract deer and hold the few turkeys he has around the place.

Yes waiting on the results of 2 samples now should come any day now.

https://www.wardlab.com



This is the lab all the big operators use in my neck of the woods.

Thanks

I've been trying to adjust my pH in kill plots before I get too fancy with anything else on my soil reports, I believe you don't get the proper fertilizer take-up unless the pH is at proper levels. I have a couple new plots where the lime recommendation is 4 T/A of 60-69 or 3T/A of 80-90, I may chase that over a two-year window.
The question I have is, if I'm liming now with pelletized lime can I spread my NPK requirements with it or am I wasting money until my soil sweetens to the proper balance?

It sounds like a guy needs to lime over time and not all at once we did one application this fall and will add more later this winter again then will fertilize when we plant the next crops whatever we end up planting as that’s up in the air. It’s going to be like planting a garden in a gravel pit to start with in MO.

I have a wildlife plot out back of the house in SD that’s a place the high water had eroded a lot of it a few years back that seems like better soil than in MO that’s mostly gravel there. Plan to lime it today then turn it next fall and plant it with leafy greens and grasses. It’s fertile as I had to mow and drag it in order to plant it as it this year it was covered with weeds once I cut them the grass came up on its own.

It’s learn as I go as I’m no farmer so it’s all trial and error based on the things I’m learning I find it interesting.

I agree- it's sure enjoyable and has given me even a higher regard for a farmers knowledge base, the anxiety that Mother Nature alone can provide has to be a gut punch sometimes when your money grows in rows. I'm not sure on my lime strategy and if it lasts in the soil for approximately 3 years- ongoing or every other year strategy is probably a good one.

Can't speak to other states but here in Georgia we follow the standard model of county extension office has the bags, they send it off to the the state land grant college, University of Georgia, for a small fee, $8last one I did, to be tested. The report comes back via email or snail mail or both your choice. It'll come with recommendations on lime/fertilizer based on what crop you indicated on the initial form along with suggested weights of various commercial mixes.

The recommended method for sampling is to take multiple random samples soil minus the surface plant duff across the entire plot to be tested collecting to a depth of six inches. Mix these samples thoroughly in a dry clean container and fill the bag to the marked line with this representative soil.

They caution not to oversample areas of the plot based on soil color/texture as that could skew things for the whole plot.

Likewise one sample from one plot may or may not represent other plots on the same tract of land.

Oh and lime takes time to incorporate and sweeten the soil. Particularly dolomitic lime which is what is recommended here for it's magnesium content. If it can be worked in and allowed to lay open and fallow that will help.

I took 2 samples on the same hillside not that far apart and the results were different in the samples so that was a learning lesson. The one sample that had a skim of dirt on top had less organic matter than the sand/gravel looking sample that was shocking to me.

On our home place we got one hillside of exposed decomposed lime rock. It's different than the rest of the place and we call it the cedar thicket for a reason as cedar thrives on that soil. The ridge tops are a mix of sandy loam and sandy clay. That whole Alabama red hills and buhrstone formation is several inverted exposed layers for quite a mix across the place. We even got a pocket or two of pure sand.

Down here in Texas it goes to one of the big universities (A&M I think)

County extension agent has all the info