Good for you to test your soil! It’s the only way you can know the exact nature of what you’ll be growing your precious vegetables and flowers in.

For a good sample, dig about 3-5” deep with a trowel or soil knife in several places in your garden to make sure you capture the characteristics of the total area you wish to use. Mix those samples together, let the soil dry, remove any stones and plant matter and, once ready, put about a cup of soil into a plastic sandwich bag. The kit should have a mailer included. Send the sample and wait for the results. You should take a sample of each area you plan to use.

Summit County’s Ohio State University Extension office uses kits from Pennsylvania State University. Your extension office (find it by: your county.osu.edu might use a different soil lab but that shouldn’t make a difference. Some nurseries and other labs may offer soil tests. It is best to stick with researched-based information offered by educational institutions where profit is not a consideration.

You can buy a kit from your local extension office, send it in and receive results showing amounts of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium. It may also give percent of organic matter and micronutrients that your plants need for optimum health.The sample results may also include fertilizer recommendations. You can take the results to your extension office where someone should be able to help you to interpret the results.