Soil Test for my City Picker Planter

Dark Rumor · January 17, 2019

I had a soil test run for my City Picker Planter (similar to earth box). The container was filled with Pro-Mix and last year used a common vegetable fertilizer and osmocote. I have not added any fertilizer since May of last year.
Not sure if I should start over or work with what is in the containers. Any suggestions?

zipcode · January 18, 2019

Seems good. pH is fine, EC is not too high, you're good to go. Phosphorous is only getting higher after each year, it's pretty much guaranteed since all organic fertilizers and also the others usually have too much.

Dark Rumor · January 18, 2019

Quote:

Originally Posted by zipcode

Seems good. pH is fine, EC is not too high, you're good to go. Phosphorous is only getting higher after each year, it's pretty much guaranteed since all organic fertilizers and also the others usually have too much.

Thanks for the input, I wonder how to avoid Phosphorus build up in a new container, what fertilizer program would be the best.

zipcode · January 19, 2019

At some point you'll get microelement deficiency, when P is super high. It's a few years until that happens, so I wouldn't worry about it, that soil will need replacing anyway.
I use a 7-3-10 organic, not exactly sure how they managed to get that formula with so little P considering they say it's chicken based. But it does have vinasse, which is probably the best organic fertilizer additive for tomatoes since it's mostly K.

Dark Rumor · January 19, 2019

I have six of these older containers with high phosphorus, I think I will replace around half of the peat/pearlite with new peat/pearlite/vermiculite in three of them which could lower/dilute the phosphorus.

Other than adding some nitrogen, it looks like I do not need to add anything other than a small amount of lime. Once I have fruit set, then I will start using the Texas Tomato Food, been wanting to try this product.

Overall I was surprised that the containers had a build up of nutrients and I am not sure why the salinity is building up considering the amount of rain these containers get.

I have a lot to learn and I see more soil tests in the future.

zipcode · January 23, 2019

If it costs money, you can probably skip the soil test. The easiest is to just get pH + EC measuring tool, since that's the important stuff, and measure runoff from time to time to see if it's not too far off. Higher EC after fruit set usually is equivalent to dry farming and will result in visibly better taste, but how much you can push it depends on variety, weather, etc.

Dark Rumor · January 25, 2019

Thanks for the guidance

rhines81 · January 25, 2019

Your metals all look very high, check your tap water, might want to get a filter in place.

Dark Rumor · January 26, 2019

Quote:

Originally Posted by rhines81

Your metals all look very high, check your tap water, might want to get a filter in place.

I was thinking about collecting rain water, not sure if it is feasible. I will look into checking the tap water.

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January 18, 2019	#2
zipcode Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: Romania/Germany , z 4-6 Posts: 1,582	Seems good. pH is fine, EC is not too high, you're good to go. Phosphorous is only getting higher after each year, it's pretty much guaranteed since all organic fertilizers and also the others usually have too much.

January 19, 2019	#4
zipcode Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: Romania/Germany , z 4-6 Posts: 1,582	At some point you'll get microelement deficiency, when P is super high. It's a few years until that happens, so I wouldn't worry about it, that soil will need replacing anyway. I use a 7-3-10 organic, not exactly sure how they managed to get that formula with so little P considering they say it's chicken based. But it does have vinasse, which is probably the best organic fertilizer additive for tomatoes since it's mostly K.

January 19, 2019	#5
Dark Rumor Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2011 Location: Southeast Texas Posts: 287	I have six of these older containers with high phosphorus, I think I will replace around half of the peat/pearlite with new peat/pearlite/vermiculite in three of them which could lower/dilute the phosphorus. Other than adding some nitrogen, it looks like I do not need to add anything other than a small amount of lime. Once I have fruit set, then I will start using the Texas Tomato Food, been wanting to try this product. Overall I was surprised that the containers had a build up of nutrients and I am not sure why the salinity is building up considering the amount of rain these containers get. I have a lot to learn and I see more soil tests in the future.

January 23, 2019	#6
zipcode Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: Romania/Germany , z 4-6 Posts: 1,582	If it costs money, you can probably skip the soil test. The easiest is to just get pH + EC measuring tool, since that's the important stuff, and measure runoff from time to time to see if it's not too far off. Higher EC after fruit set usually is equivalent to dry farming and will result in visibly better taste, but how much you can push it depends on variety, weather, etc.

January 25, 2019	#7
Dark Rumor Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2011 Location: Southeast Texas Posts: 287	Thanks for the guidance

January 25, 2019	#8
rhines81 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Mar 2015 Location: Zone 5A, Poconos Posts: 959	Your metals all look very high, check your tap water, might want to get a filter in place.