Q: I want to have my soil tested before I plant my garden. Do you test soil or can you tell me where can take some soil to have it tested?
A. Ask first why they need to do that. We as master gardeners discourage this practice. It is very costly, difficult to collect the sample correctly and most often not needed.
That said, sometimes when preparing a garden, you still want to get your soil tested. You might want to know the PH of your soil or a determination of the soil structure (sandy, loamy or clay or a mixture of those).
UC Cooperative Extension (UCCE) and the County Dept. of Agriculture does NOT provide any commercial soil testing services at this time.
There are some Do It Yourself Tests at some Home Improvement stores. You may choose to send a soil sample to a professional for more accurate results. A variety of soil tests are available for high fee from commercial analytical laboratories.
Here is a list of Soil Test Facilities that Mary Matava has used.
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