When I signed up for this program, soil testing was on the top of my "learn more about" list. And since I'm preparing to revamp my lawn, the timing couldn't have been better.
Ralph Tuthill, the Nassau CCE's senior extension resource educator (aka the Head Honcho) took charge of the class for the day, lecturing on the composition of soil, the need for and types of soil amendments, compost and -- the pièce de résistance -- adjusting soil pH.
When the time came, I giddily removed three baggies of soil I had scooped up from my front, side and back yards and unpacked my CCE-issue soil test kit. Chemicals in hand, I tested my samples and logged the results (6.2, 7.2 and 7.0, respectively.)
After a lecture on nutrients, fertilizers and some fun mathematical exercises on figuring out how much N, P or K (that's nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium) to use based on square footage, class was adjourned for the day. I went home with a skip in my step, knowing my lawn will be just fine.
