How to Collect Your Soil Sample ~ For Biological Soil Testing
These instructions are for folks bringing a soil sample to a venue where we are providing free, biological, soil snapshots.
A full biological report gives detailed biomass counts & actual organism counts and take about one hour to perform. Ten minute biological snapshots provide a general overview of the health of your soil. Biological soil sampling is different from sampling for soil chemistry, so please read the instructions carefully. Please collect your sample the same day that you are coming to visit our booth. Keep the sample at ambient temperature, not cold and not hot, and leave 2/3 air space inside the plastic bag before sealing it. How many samples you should send depends upon how many differing areas you have on your land/garden/farm, etc. Ideally, each separate area would have its own soil sample, but we do limit you to one free snapshot per person. So, if that’s not possible, then be sure that any area you take a soil core from is representative of the the entire area you want to sample.
1) You will need a core sampler (apple corers or spoons also work), a zip lock plastic bag, and a permanent marker. Brush aside any loose, un-decomposed organic matter (OM) from the surface of the area you wish to sample. Sample the soil, not the OM!
2) Find the area that is halfway between the drip line and stem / trunk of a plant, bush or tree that lives in the area you wish to test. The drip line is the edge of the canopy of the plant. Use the apple corer to pull up one sample of the top 3 inches of soil in one tiny spot. Take at least 3 randomly chosen soil cores from this area that is halfway between the drip line and stem. Place all three cores into the same bag. Leave the cores un-mixed. Mixing causes some damage to microbes and the structure they have created in the soil. It also changes the environmental conditions. It is important to leave them as undisturbed as possible, until it is time for us to assess the sample.
3) Make sure to clearly label the bag on the outside. Do not put anything inside the bag besides the sample. Label the outside with the date, location and type (area of your property, kind of plant sampled…) of sample. Also include the name of the sampler. Use a permanent marker to prevent the information from being washed or rubbed off.
4) Do not fill the bag more than ⅓ full, and make sure to leave air inside before sealing it, so the microorganisms have oxygen.
IF YOU ARE SAMPLING WHEN NO PLANTS ARE GROWING take 3-5 samples from representative areas of your plot. Put the cores in the same bag and don’t break them up or mix them.
IF YOU ARE REQUESTING A FULL BIOLOGICAL REPORT FROM OUR LAB AT THE LIVING SOIL COMPANY - Ideally make a grid on paper of your plot, with 9-15 equally spaced zones. Randomly select 3 zones to sample, and then take 3-5 core samples from each of the randomly chosen zones. Place all 3-5 cores from one zone in a bag and label it properly (ie: zone 1, 2, 3…). You may be able to save money by placing all the cores from all the zones in the same bag. Ask us about this before hand to be sure this is appropriate for your circumstances. Please contact us for overnight shipping instructions or hand delivery instructions to our South Portland lab.