Soil Analysis
What is soil analysis?
Soil analysis is a test to identify the general health of the soil.
It can include analysis of nutrient levels, soil pH and the amount of sand, silt and clay in the soil.
Soil analysis will help you to implement the most appropriate maintenance regimes dependent on the requirements of your pitches.
What type of soil analysis type is there?
There are different types of soil analysis but the two types most frequently referenced for winter pitches are:
- Broad-Spectrum Nutrient Soil Analysis
- PSD Analysis (also known as Particle Size Distribution Analysis)
What is the difference?
A comprehensive nutrient soil analysis will tell you the pH of your soils as well as analysing the amount and availability of nutrients in your soil.
⚠️ Too much or too little of all these nutrients will create problems with turf health.
A PSD analysis essentially helps to categorise the type of soil texture you have, sometimes including how much organic matter you have if requested.
This is normally presented as the percentage of clay, silt and, sand sized particles you have in your soil.
Why is soil analysis useful?
A nutrient soil analysis may identify low or high soil pH. This will affect how easily nutrients in your soil can be taken up by the grass and can lead to other problems such as disease or high worm activity.
Effective interpretation of a soil analysis will save you money meaning you only apply what your grass plant needs.
A PSD analysis is useful information for selecting top dressings that are compatible with your native soils and good turf management in general.
💡 If you have sandy soils, you may need to apply more fertiliser or use a controlled release fertiliser as these soils leach nutrients more quickly.
💡 If you have heavy clay soils, you may need to apply a sandy top-dressing to firm up the surface of the pitch.
How often should I carry out a soil analysis?
If you have sandy soils you may need to carry out a nutrient analysis annually whereas clay soils probably every 2 years is sufficient.
🗓️ March/early April is the ideal time to do this.
You may want to carry out a PSD analysis every few years or more regularly if you keep an eye on organic matter content or apply regular top dressings.
Who can carry out a soil analysis for me?
Self-assessment sampling kits are available online, but we would generally recommend you contact your fertiliser or dressings supplier to discuss soil analysis in the first instance.
Fertiliser suppliers will often have FACTS (Fertiliser Advisers Certification and Training Scheme) qualified technical advisors to provide expert guidance.
How much does it cost?
Some suppliers may offer soil analysis as part of your customer package when purchasing materials from them.
Alternatively, you can purchase kits online or get a quote from a testing laboratory directly.
Expect to pay somewhere between £40-£100 for a soil analysis depending on what you are asking for
