Check soil texture and pH

When to do it

Before choosing soil amendments or a permanent planting. Recent lime, fertiliser or compost can distort pH results; follow the test instructions.

What you need

• Clean trowel and sample container
• Water
• Soil pH kit or laboratory test

How to do it

1. Take separate samples from areas that look or perform differently. Avoid a single fertiliser spill or compost pocket.
2. Moisten a little soil and rub it between finger and thumb. Grit suggests sand; a sticky ribbon suggests clay; a smooth, floury feel suggests silt. Most gardens contain a mixture.
3. Record how the same area drains after rain. Texture alone does not tell you whether the soil is compacted or waterlogged.
4. For pH, follow the kit or laboratory sampling method, depth and mixing instructions. Use clean equipment and read the result at the specified time.
5. Compare with your plant’s needs: below 7 is acidic, 7 neutral, above 7 alkaline. Seek a soil-specific amendment rate if adjustment is needed; a pH test does not measure all nutrients or contamination.

What success looks like

• You have a labelled result for each distinct growing area.
• Any amendment has a reason and a measured rate.

Watch out for

• Treating every soil as needing lime or gypsum.
• Using an uncalibrated meter as a precise laboratory result.

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