Fall Lawn Tips: Soil Testing

Fall is a great time to test your lawn’s soil pH and organic matter. Have you had problems planting grass, or maintaining your lawn’s health? Maybe you have a pH and nutrient problem.

A soil test will identify your lawn’s levels of phosphorus, potassium, calcium, magnesium, sodium, sulfur, manganese, copper and zinc.The pH is a measure of the acidity or basicity in your soil. Having a balanced pH level is a key to having a healthy and beautiful lawn.

The ideal pH level in Massachusetts is between 6.2 and 6.8. Testing your soil allows you to know if you need to apply liming to your lawn. Liming is applied to acidic soils after an increase in the pH level. If you decide to test your own soil, you may send to the University of Massachusetts Soil and Plant Tissue Laboratory or to us at Simora Landscape and Lawn Care. Though, we recommend calling a professional to carefully evaluate the health of your lawn. Professionals can quickly identify if you need a soil test and can help you avoid applying too much or too little lime or fertilizer.