@Marlorena did you do any at home test kits before you did an RHS one? I’m tempted, I did an at home test before and it said my soil was neutral when I was expecting it to be acidic (based on the surroundings and the soil map) I’m lucky to be in a spot that is loam as most of the town is acidic clay!
@zugenie Yes I did, I had one of those gadgets similar to WAMS above, but with a single metal spike.. gave me a reading of 6.5 slightly acid.. I didn't trust it.. then the spike broke so I decided to get the test done out of curiosity. It's very easy, they send you all the bags and you just enclose a cheque with it.. It's important to take samples that are not tainted with sand and cement mixes, in case you've had paving done, or fence repairs.. You fill the bag with about 7 ozs of soil if I remember..
It was a bit of a shock reading the report.. it wasn't exactly glowing.. lol..
@Marlorena interesting! I might do that in a month or so and get front and back tested, I don’t expect there to be much difference but the back garden will have had two years of manure mulch by that point so would be interesting to see if it’s made much of a difference compared to the front that hasn’t been touched!
VdB was very bendy so I’ve tied the cane into the obelisk, think I’ll spiral it up!
Will defoliate at the weekend along with the rest of my massive garden to do list!
I have done pH testing using a cheapo kit (shot up to the top of the alkaline scale) and a fancier one resembling a chemistry set. The latter took me ages to work out how to use it, but when I finally did it was around 9. Not a surprise!
Wish we had RHS-style soil testing here, you can get it done but aimed at farmers and very expensive. Low in available nitrogen and (especially) potassium is a curious one @Marlorena. Did they give you a reason why that may be, based on things such as your soil type, area profile etc., or just the facts?
Most of my new roses growing on in the poly are leafing out nicely, one or two laggards and one, Versigny, is looking suicidal. I was really looking forward to this one but also bracing for disappointment since it looked poorly from the start. All canes are gradually dying back and getting that telltale ridged look:
Mountainous Northern Catalunya, Spain. Hot summers, cold winters.
@Nollie I was told that it's common for UK soils to be depleted of Nitrogen and Potassium due to winter rains, they get leached out. I was surprised by the low levels but these were early Spring tests, and they should be done before any feeding takes place. I'm in an agricultural area and my soil is very high in phosphorus, which is why I no longer use bone meal. When taking soil samples one has to go down aways to where the root systems are, not the top soil. I dug down a foot or so.. those gadgets I think tend to penetrate only the upper levels unless you dig down..
Re your Versigny, - not looking good at all.. I enlarged it and I'll put my cards on the table and say it's dead.. I'd be surprised if that one came back, even though there are some green bits higher up, it looks dead at the base to me.. I might scrape away outer bark near the base to see if there's any green showing underneath.
Absolutely all of my new bareroots are growing / leafing up apart from the Ingenious Mr Fairchild... I was a bit worried about that one then remembered it's only January after all. 🤦♀️ Getting impatient for May/June now...
How does Vitax Q4 compares to Vitax azalea. I havent done a soil test but I have very happy acid loving plants Acers, Camellias, rhododendrons, hydrangeas etc so I might not need to add acidic fertilizer.
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Mine is the same WAMS.. no soil testing for me until I find them a permanent spot..
... don't all rush now.. !
Only 2 acres... doddle !..
Yes I did, I had one of those gadgets similar to WAMS above, but with a single metal spike.. gave me a reading of 6.5 slightly acid.. I didn't trust it.. then the spike broke so I decided to get the test done out of curiosity.
It's very easy, they send you all the bags and you just enclose a cheque with it..
It's important to take samples that are not tainted with sand and cement mixes, in case you've had paving done, or fence repairs..
You fill the bag with about 7 ozs of soil if I remember..
It was a bit of a shock reading the report.. it wasn't exactly glowing.. lol..
VdB was very bendy so I’ve tied the cane into the obelisk, think I’ll spiral it up!
Wish we had RHS-style soil testing here, you can get it done but aimed at farmers and very expensive. Low in available nitrogen and (especially) potassium is a curious one @Marlorena. Did they give you a reason why that may be, based on things such as your soil type, area profile etc., or just the facts?
Most of my new roses growing on in the poly are leafing out nicely, one or two laggards and one, Versigny, is looking suicidal. I was really looking forward to this one but also bracing for disappointment since it looked poorly from the start. All canes are gradually dying back and getting that telltale ridged look:
I was told that it's common for UK soils to be depleted of Nitrogen and Potassium due to winter rains, they get leached out. I was surprised by the low levels but these were early Spring tests, and they should be done before any feeding takes place.
I'm in an agricultural area and my soil is very high in phosphorus, which is why I no longer use bone meal.
When taking soil samples one has to go down aways to where the root systems are, not the top soil. I dug down a foot or so.. those gadgets I think tend to penetrate only the upper levels unless you dig down..
Re your Versigny, - not looking good at all.. I enlarged it and I'll put my cards on the table and say it's dead.. I'd be surprised if that one came back, even though there are some green bits higher up, it looks dead at the base to me..
I might scrape away outer bark near the base to see if there's any green showing underneath.
Absolutely all of my new bareroots are growing / leafing up apart from the Ingenious Mr Fairchild... I was a bit worried about that one then remembered it's only January after all. 🤦♀️ Getting impatient for May/June now...