soil ph. levels 3.5 ???

roageone said:

so were do I find this info

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Sorry. I thought a google search would bring it up. I was surprised it didn't (when I just looked). Here's the link:

http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/depts/hort/floriculture/crop/crop_PTS.htm

I've never done it. But, it gives an idea of how an accurate ph runoff test should work. I never ph my runoff anymore. I measure PPMs for salt buildup and use that soil probe I mentioned earlier. But, when I measured runoff ph I would keep in mind how long the initial saturation sat in the soil. If it was less time than the "method" I would make a mental adjustment to the reading. (And, if the amount of runoff was large, I would keep in mind how the saturated liquid may have been diluted by that fresh input. Another mental adjustment.).

I'm not sure the way I did it was too accurate. I usually refer to the academic method as an example of how casual runoff PH'ing probably isn't accurate. (Most people aren't going to do the "method" very often. It's tedious and time consuming.).

I

roageone said:

my question is. Is this normal? or should I raise the ph. in my soil and how would I do that? by raiseing the ph. in my water would I have to go to 10 to level it at 6.5 or am I totally off?

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Flushing with High ph to correct will likely cause shock. Especially with the large difference between where you seem to be and your (probably sarcastic) suggestion of using a ph10 flush.

FWIW: I have watered with ph 10 (or a little higher). I mixed 1/2 to 3/4 tsp hydrated lime in water. Poured it in, let it saturate for 30 minutes to an hour, then poured mild nutrients to displace that water.

It didn't hurt the plant in any way I could see. But, the plant was having serious problems from salt buildup. I wasn't even fixing the problem. It's not something I would recommend anyone do. But, just saying, it didn't cause the problem you'd think it would (the soil was about 4.5 at that time).

I don't think the OP has a problem. His ph pen is broken, or something.

my pen is calibrated with GH 4.01 and is only about a month old.
my tap water runs at 7.2.
when I said 10 I was doing math sort of I wasn't being sarcastic.
when I got a reading of 3.5 it was a sound reading
from runoff water I ran 4.5 gallons thru before I did the last .5 gal
I waited about 30 mins before I did the last half gal.
I figured it would read at around 7 because of the water I was putting in.
so the question is really. how do I get it back up?
hydrated lime is that like lime peal that is dried out and ground up?

I didn't have any problems until I used nutes. an I thought I went light at about half strength.

The topic of lime is confusing. It's best not to use hydrated. I shouldn't have mentioned it. It's used in small amounts to make initial adjustments to your soil before planting. 3/4 tsp/gal raises soil a full point.

You should use dolomite lime to buffer your soil before planting. Look at the label of products and use something that contains carbonated calcium and magnesium in a 1.2 to 1 ratio. (They break down and produce a 1.6 to 1 ratio of elemental Ca and Mg.). There are other types of lime with different ratios. Calcitic is about 10 to 1. So, that's why you have to look at the label.).

The best way to think about hydrated lime is that it's *not* the above. It won't have carbonates. It's entirely oxides. If you want to see the difference, google for Fertilome's Hy-Yield Agricultural and Horticultural limes. Look at the labels of both.

If you really have 3.5 soil, you could feed with ph 7-8 to try and pull it higher. You could topdress dolomite (1 tbsp/gal of soil) into the topsoil and water it in. Takes a couple weeks and won't really affect all your soil. It's a kludgy fix.

But, I wouldn't do anything unless you're having a problem.