Why dont people want to do soil tests
It seems like every day there's a question in this forum or another one I follow that is basically, "I have a new piece of ground that I want to put into production this year. I haven't done a soil test. What should I put on this to make sure I get an awesome crop of ______?"
Then follows a long list of recommendations from around the world -- people in different climates, with different soil types, with different crops, different management -- all telling this lad or lass what has worked for them.
Now, I'm all for farmer to farmer exchanges of information, but let's get real folks. Soil tests are easy and cheap, and without one you are whistling in the dark.
Here in New Hampshire I could almost say, "put on two tons of lime per acre and test next year to see how much more you need to add before your crops can start to utilize macronutrients effectively." But two tons of lime per acre is going to cost at least an order of magnitude more than a basic soil test ($15 to $20).
In some cases, amendment dealers will even do the soil testing for free if they think you represent a good enough sales opportunity (have a large enough operation). You won't even have to bend over and put a trowel in the dirt in some cases!
I see the same reluctance in my day job, assisting farmers to improve their soil health. Most small farms don't have current soil tests, or if they do, they only have them for one field of many.
So why don't people want to do soil tests?
Test the Soil biology. They are determining what is available. Any fertilizer or lime, gypsum, whatever over 100 pounds per acre is destroying that biology. They are all salt based and the one cell organisms will be killed. Real compost (aerobic decomposition) is not about fertilizing, but innoculting your soil and plants with the full spectrum of soil biology to jump start nutrient cycling. Check out Dr. Elaine Ingham's work on YouTube.
I get the soil tested -- its $110.00 a pop plus shipping costs about $20.00. Soil is variable (clay, gravel and swamp muck) at my location so three tests at $110.00 is $360.00. Plus labs measurements are not very reliable -- they vary drastically between labs so test again. Now I am out $720.00. Reliable and informative soil tests are expensive.
If you're going conventional or conventional organic, then it makes sense to do a test. If you are as small as I am, and you do multiple tests, like you need to for accurate, meaningful results, and you get them from a good lab with sufficient detail, and your state does not subsidize the cost... it does add up though. I'm not doing one because I'm going to add the same stuff regardless: compost, worm casting tea, and bio-fertilizer for remineralization. I know what the results will be if I get one: such low organic matter, and so acidic that everything else is meaningless... But that's me personally, and I'm not on here asking people what I should put down. There's a general problem on here with people asking for and giving advice without the necessary context. In theory, you should be able to learn a lot about your soil by other means... like observing what weeds you have, but nobody can tell you that over the internet either.
I used to calculate soil recommendations in high pH soils as a soil scientist. People struggled interpreting results, but often our clients needed to know how to take a representative soil test for it to be effective. I will say my old boss would only add fertilizer to his garden when he noticed yellowing and he managed a lab. Normally N or P are the only applications you need unless your pH is very high or low.
