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Need some help on my soil test.......South Central Texas
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Hay Wilson in TX
Posted 2/21/2008 13:48 (#315863 - in reply to #315634)
Subject: We all here suffer with Lab test results here.



Little River, TX

First I do hope they used the Olsen ie. Sodium Bicarbonate test for phosphate. I strongly suspect they used Mehlich II. We will have e to go with what we have for now.

So here goes;
I would say 60 lbs is a good guess for phosphate. With your calcium levels I would suspect you have at least a 10% free lime situation. In that case consider applying double that 60 units of P2O5 at least on a few rows.
Realize not all Blackland Clay soils are the same. They look the same but have different clay types. Assuming you truly have a 30 meq/100g CEC soil type, that likes to crack when dry I would look for a potassium test level in the 360 ppm range. Some of my soils are in the 50 meq/100g CEC range. These are Trinity Clay soils, but the Wilson Clay soils are just as bad!
Where you apply 120 lbs/A P2O5 also spread 500 lbs of Murate of Potash (0-0-60). Fondly referred to as MOP.

I hope you did not pay extra for the micro nutrients and sulfur.

This summer, at the stage A&L suggest, clip tissue samples from each field. From the as recommended parts and the added P & K area(s). Tissue analysis is the only really reliable discovery of available micro nutrients as well as sulfur and possibly for phosphate and Magnesium. That should be a test question.

In my opinion A&L at Memphis can provide as good a raw data as any other lab with the exception of TAMU's. I have zero confidence in TAMU soils people. For a recommendation to be of any use the lab must have crop response data from the soil type being tested. What I am saying do your own recommendations.

See if A&L will test for a measured CEC value. May cost $40 a sample, but till the clay turns to sandy the CEC will stay the same.
See if they will test for percent of free lime.
If A&L is using the Olsen chemistry you want 18 ppm P soil test. For rented land 12 ppm P and banding phosphate will work.
Then if and another if Phsphate analysis is discovered using Olsen chemistry, you can figure 17 lbs/A P2O5 for each desired increase in ppm P plus an additional 10 lbs for each percentage of free lime.

This is because the calcium in will tie up the phosphate into a Calcium Phosphate some of which are definatly not available. Do not dispare though as eventually this phosphate will be recovered. I pelieve I am recovering some of the phosphate my father put out in the 1950's.

The Potash is essential for efficient water utilization. I say we are in the 5 th month of the drought of 2008.


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