You have probably often heard people talking about soil PH levels. This is the acid level of your soil. I show you how to test your soil PH very cheaply using PH test strips, also known as litmus paper.

 

There are many fancy kits out there which are sold for the purpose of testing your soil PH levels. These kits are often over priced and do the exact same thing as a package of litmus paper PH test strips. The PH test strips are the same thing as the fancy kits. When they come in contact with an acid or a base the color changes to show you the PH level on a colar chart.

 

You can find PH test strips very cheaply right here on Amazon: Litmus Paper PH Test Strips

 

I got two packs of 80 test strips which is basically a lifetime supply. This will allow me to continue to test my soil acid levels for years to come as I build up the garden soil with amendments and compost.

 

PH test strips

 

PH Litmus Paper Test Kit

 

Testing your soil PH level with test strips is very simple. You need distilled water, PH test strips and a soil sample. Mosten the soil to the consistency of wet mud. Then taar off a PH test strip and dip it into the mixture. The color will immediately change to show you the acid level in your soil sample.

 

 

 

I tested the soil in my salad bed and the large plot I am preparing for our garden. Both showed just about the same acid levels of about 5.5 to 6 on the PH scale. This is in the safe range for growing vegetables. Actually the lettuce bed is a bit less acidic than the garden plot.

 

Soil PH Test Results Using PH Test Strips

 

Checking Soil PH Level Based On Test Strip Color Chart

 

And just because there was not much color change on the litmus paper PH test strips I took a few inside to do a test. I got out some vinegar and baking soda. Vinegar is an acid and baking soda is a base.

When I dipped the litmus paper strip into vinegar it immediately turned red showing an acid level.

 

Next for comparison I dipped a PH test strip into some baking soda and water mixture and immediately got a green color showing me a base PH level.

 

The PH test strips are woking fine.

 

Comparing PH tests of vinegar, baking soil and our soil sample

 

I would perform these tests from time to time through the years if you have some left over for future PH soil testing just to make sure that the PH test strips are still working well.

 

And thats all there is to testing your soil PH for only a couple dollars.

 

You can watch today's video here: Checking Soil Acid Levels With PH Litmus Paper Test Strips

 

While you are over there please subscribe to my YouTube channel and follow our daily videos as we strive to become self sufficient and off the grid on a budget.

About the Author

Troy Reid

Your Response

Name

E-mail

Comment

Cancel