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Compost test?
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Compost test?
I was wondering about the quality of my compost, as I'm sure we all do. I found a site online which said that you could test your compost by planting radish seeds, and if 3/4 germinated then your compost is good. That seems like a bit of a dubious claim, since you can germinate seeds in almost anything and many things can affect the germination rate. But it does make sense that your sprouts will do better in compost then, say, vermiculite.
Here's my radishes after about a week:
They have a nice dark green, which I think is hopeful.
Are there other simple suggestions for testing or comparing compost?
Here's my radishes after about a week:
They have a nice dark green, which I think is hopeful.
Are there other simple suggestions for testing or comparing compost?
markqz
Forum Moderator- Posts : 918
Join date : 2019-09-02
Location : Lower left hand corner
Re: Compost test?
I read this somewhere online:
"Plastic Bag Test"
Take a handful of compost from the interior of the pile and moisten it well. Put the compost in a plastic bag and seal it. Keep the bag sealed at room temperature for five to seven days. Then open the bag and smell the contents. It should have a pleasant, earthy, soil-like smell. If it smells foul or rotten or a bit like ammonia the compost is not completely finished.
Also, I suppose you could always try using one of those "NPK tests" you can buy at most garden centres. They usually come with little capsules and vials and you just add water and check the resulting colour.
"Plastic Bag Test"
Take a handful of compost from the interior of the pile and moisten it well. Put the compost in a plastic bag and seal it. Keep the bag sealed at room temperature for five to seven days. Then open the bag and smell the contents. It should have a pleasant, earthy, soil-like smell. If it smells foul or rotten or a bit like ammonia the compost is not completely finished.
Also, I suppose you could always try using one of those "NPK tests" you can buy at most garden centres. They usually come with little capsules and vials and you just add water and check the resulting colour.
goodtogrow- Posts : 94
Join date : 2022-04-05
Location : BC, Canada, zone 8a/8b
Re: Compost test?
goodtogrow wrote:Also, I suppose you could always try using one of those "NPK tests" you can buy at most garden centres. They usually come with little capsules and vials and you just add water and check the resulting colour.
Soil test are generally useless for testing compost. There is very little to none of the readily available NPK that these test look for in compost until such time as microbes break it down and make the nutrients plant-available. If you send in a compost sample to a lab that specifically analyzes compost, they will test for organic matter, soluble salts, phosphorus, calcium, manganese, sodium, etc., and not primarily NPK.
"In short, the soil food web feeds everything you eat and helps keep your favorite planet from getting too hot. Be nice to it." ~ Diane Miessler, "Grow Your Soil"
Re: Compost test?
markqz wrote:I was wondering about the quality of my compost, as I'm sure we all do. I found a site online which said that you could test your compost by planting radish seeds, and if 3/4 germinated then your compost is good.
My radish seed packet managed to get damp by lying in some spilled water, and the seeds in the packet had 95% germination rate. Guess the compost quality of the packet was good.
"In short, the soil food web feeds everything you eat and helps keep your favorite planet from getting too hot. Be nice to it." ~ Diane Miessler, "Grow Your Soil"
Re: Compost test?
Ah okay, good to know!OhioGardener wrote:Soil test are generally useless for testing compost. There is very little to none of the readily available NPK that these test look for in compost until such time as microbes break it down and make the nutrients plant-available. If you send in a compost sample to a lab that specifically analyzes compost, they will test for organic matter, soluble salts, phosphorus, calcium, manganese, sodium, etc., and not primarily NPK.
Sorry, Mark, don't do that, then.
goodtogrow- Posts : 94
Join date : 2022-04-05
Location : BC, Canada, zone 8a/8b
Re: Compost test?
There's an idea. Think how much time you'd save if the seed companies sent your seeds pre-germinated!OhioGardener wrote:My radish seed packet managed to get damp by lying in some spilled water, and the seeds in the packet had 95% germination rate. Guess the compost quality of the packet was good.
markqz
Forum Moderator- Posts : 918
Join date : 2019-09-02
Location : Lower left hand corner
Re: Compost test?
You were using a common method of testing the quality of the compost when there's a chance it's contaminated with a pre-emergent herbicide or selective herbicide.markqz wrote:I was wondering about the quality of my compost, as I'm sure we all do. I found a site online which said that you could test your compost by planting radish seeds, and if 3/4 germinated then your compost is good.
Here's my radishes after about a week:
Re: Compost test?
goodtogrow wrote:
Also, I suppose you could always try using one of those "NPK tests" you can buy at most garden centres. They usually come with little capsules and vials and you just add water and check the resulting colour.
Just a reminder that if you are doing an at-home soil test, you need to know the pH of your water before you start. I had the toughest time amending my soil the first year or two until I discovered our well's water had a pH of 8.0 and I couldn't use it for the tests. I also don't use it to water my blueberries, which like an acidic pH. I use only rainwater that I collect and store especially for them.
DianeZone7OK- Posts : 12
Join date : 2011-12-19
Location : zone 7
sanderson likes this post
Re: Compost test?
DianeZone7OK wrote:Just a reminder that if you are doing an at-home soil test, you need to know the pH of your water before you start.
If using MM, you should never need to be concerned with the pH of your SFG beds. Compost tends toward neutralizing itself, and never varies very far from neutral unless amendments are added which are either acid or alkaline.
"In short, the soil food web feeds everything you eat and helps keep your favorite planet from getting too hot. Be nice to it." ~ Diane Miessler, "Grow Your Soil"
sanderson likes this post
Re: Compost test?
Quite true. In addition to my SFG beds I also have a standard garden where I use the native clay soil and amend it. I need more room for tomatoes, peppers, potatoes, and strawberries than what fits on my roof, and I just haven't had any luck with corn in an SFG bed. Nice plants, poorly pollinated ears.OhioGardener wrote:If using MM, you should never need to be concerned with the pH of your SFG beds. Compost tends toward neutralizing itself, and never varies very far from neutral unless amendments are added which are either acid or alkaline.
DianeZone7OK- Posts : 12
Join date : 2011-12-19
Location : zone 7
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