What's the Perfect Tomato pH Soil Level? We Test 3 Garden Beds
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- čas přidán 28. 08. 2024
- In this video, I show you the best pH soil level for tomatoes and other vegetables by conducting soil tests in 3 of our garden beds. These soil tests give the pH levels and vital information about why some plants and vegetables are growing well and why others are not.
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Self Sufficient Me is based on our small 3-acre property/homestead in SE Queensland Australia about 45kms north of Brisbane - the climate is subtropical (similar to Florida). I started Self Sufficient Me in 2011 as a blog website project where I document and write about backyard food growing, self-sufficiency, and urban farming in general. I love sharing my foodie and DIY adventures online so come along with me and let's get into it! Cheers, Mark :)
really informative and the information is pretty universal to other plants. keep it up brother
Thanks Terry! 🙂
You have become my teacher. I watch so much stuff on CZcams and must say your channel ls the best , hands down. Your videography, presentation etc., is so professional. You live what you say and teach. Congratulations. Mate.😀
That is interesting. I am looking forward to seeing how the amendments help that last raised bed's plants.
Great job with the testing kit and results. Gardening is all about learning! You learned by testing your soil and I learn by watching your videos! 😊
Its so refreshing to see someone maybe not get it perfect, too often we only see the perfect view. Kuddos!!!
I purchased one of these test kits a couple months ago but haven’t used it yet. Least I won’t have to read the instructions now 👍
Thanks for this! I had just come across my soil test kit, which I'd never used. Now that I've had two growing seasons behind me, I'm seeing things I'd like to know more about. It was all too overwhelming in the beginning. I was just happy to see anything grow at all! You've walked me through it and I see it's not so difficult. I can do this! 😃 Greetings from a sweltering Japan!
Mark, I wish the Selfsufficient t-shirts included the "look and See the earth through her eyes..." wording. Its so cool.
Thanks for the feedback Debra. I'll work on your shirt suggestion in September and see what I can come up with. I'm keen to design some more tees. Cheers 🙂👍
I reckon "let's get into it" could make an appearance as well :)
Marcus Maximus, I agree with Paul Jefferies: "LET'S GET INTO IT" is pretty much identifiable with your vids and is a great invitation to join you in gardening and becoming more Self Sufficient
I agree. I love my SSM tank top though.
I've got the chest size but not the shape that would look good in a Tank Top.
(My daughters would look good in them though.)
Mark I have done this testing since I first put my gardens in as the original soil was terrible & I was so new to gardening. Boy has it kept me on track - yes lots of hits & misses but this year I think I have found my perfect balance using my own compost & no dig. Great video for newbies to gardening. Cheers Denise- Geebung
What I have learned from gardening is that the soil is there to teach us about life. I am using a No Dig method of gardening which is to not disturb the soil as much as possible. I do not fork the soil, I simply lay compost on top and have noticed the ground becomes more fertile as the years go by.
Awesome vid and great info. Here in Oklahoma USA. our County extension office does soil test for 10 US dollars and gives you a full report on the soil and even gives your information on what needs to be added to make it better soil!
Seems like great value and a top service! 🙂👍
Fascinating. I'm glad you showed cause & effect, solutions and theory as well as just the test kit results.
As a beginner in the vegie garden I find your videos the best guide I could have. Thank you so much and please keep it up.
I too have been struggling with some new beds and bought one of these kits. Watching you i now feel more confident about using it.
I used to grow tomatoes but this year put them in a new area, in front of the house. I've been wondering if pH was why they did so poorly. Definitely testing next year.
Your videos are great always something new
Very interesting. An old gardener told me to keep my ash in a bucket of water, then use that water as a source of potash, rather than the ash directly. He also collects urine especially for peas. More poultry manure should correct the alkalinity problem.
That walk out from behind the garden bed at the start 😄👌 so good
I always garden with a machete. It terrifies the pests.
Macho Machete Man! I just pull funny faces at them.
P
I had left my garden to waste for 2 years. Took months to weed and re-prep the soil.
This video helped kick me in the back side to check the PH of my soil.
Thanks for that.
Good on ya Eric for getting back into your gardening! 🙂👍
I found it interesting and I'm going to test my soil now. Thanks
I added wood shavings to a small garden bed this year and planted two broccoli plants. Another plant was in an extra pot with the same soil without wood shavings.
The broccoli plants in the container with wood turned purple, were not growing well at all and started to bolt very early. No harvest possible here.
The other broccoli plant is doing just fine and already produced a full head.
The problem was that the wood shavings came from oak wood and contained lots of acid. This shift in soil pH means that the broccoli can't absorb nutrients from the soil, so the plant succumbs. So, lesson learned, always check the soil pH and adjust it if needed.
Excellent experiment 👍🙂
Can you do a video on your water/ irrigation systems
Ditched in favour of a retractable hose: czcams.com/video/Eu8hxqdvS5Y/video.html
400K subs Mark! Good on ya!!
Good one Mark, our peas here in South Africa (Western Cape) are about the same height as those in your garden. Planted ours a week ago. Cheers!! Brian & Sandra
Thanks for your videos I learn heaps from you👍👍
I had the problem of too much P and K and hardly any N. I sent in a soil sample and the results were to add a lot of N every 2 weeks, I forgot now how much, and add no P or K for 5 years. I have a lot of changing to do. Love your videos. Have a Wonderful & Blessed Day!!!
I really like your videos Mark, I'm new to growing my own food...tomatoes and peppers actually. Anyway you're very knowledgeable and I like your experimenting, testing, trial and errors, everything really. Watching you from Sacramento, California....Thanks for sharing big man.👍
Thanks Charles! Keep growing mate 🙂👍
Gypsum will work that's what I use plus some ultra fine granite sand which has a pH of 6 the sulfur is great for blueberries and finger limes chelated iron works well in pots on some plants also
Just brought some gypsum with me from Cape Town SA. Hope to use it primarily to ward off the threat of clay in soil for my trees.
I am curious to know more about its ph properties. How will it affect the ph balance of my soil ?
Thanks for sharing your experience and knowledge 👍🙂
It's slighltly acid basically sulfur and calcium in mineral form
never had a problem growing garlic ,moved to a new house ,planted my garlic ,all of them just withered away ,did a soil ph test and the soil is acidic .the ph test worth all the money it cost me which was £5
Very helpful video as always! Thanks so very much!
Thanks for the info and what you do mark. Glad you’re back in action hope the vacation went awesome for y’all.
Still on vacation Nathan but thanks mate! I made several videos in advance for release whilst we're away and then I'm going to try for twice a week when we get back 🙂👍
I’m the third generation on our little farm raising the fourth. Garden, turkeys, chickens goats the whole nine yards. I’m going to build us some raised beds, thinking of using 22 gauge galvanized sheets. I’m an HVAC guy so the material is no problem. Your Thoughts or advice on that ideas validity? Just if you get time. Thank you sir.
If it were me , I'd add some sulphate of ammonia to that last bed seeing as it's leafy veggies , it'll help correct the Ph and supply nitrogen . Longer term maintenance can then be done organically with manures etc.
I think I have the same test kit but in different packaging ( I bought it years ago ) , made by Inoculo Laboratories in Victoria , I tend to use much less soil for testing , like half a teaspoon , it's all you need .
Hello from Otago, NZ. Your video came along just at the right time. I'd bought a trailer load of tomato compost & had been concerned about it's actual pH. So I popped along to Bunnings & purchased one of those Gardman pH test kits. Turns out the compost is 5.5 & the original soil is about 6.8 ... so I reckon a combination of the both + some peat moss will be just about right. Thanks for that.
Just started growing my own vegetables and lots of basil. Love this concept of varying the soil pH. I’ll check out your other videos!
Here in Western Australia - the manures are often akaline (even cow manure, which is naturally slightly acidic) - which makes it harder to grow vegetables.
Hey, Self Suffficient Mate! I am admiring your love that you provide for your plants. I started watching your videos, due to my grandpa. He has been a big old school farmer thorughout his entire life. I think he has been facing some ph issues and I think he is way back when it comes to garden development. All these tips on your channel would be so pleasing and helpful for him. I wanted to ask, whether it is possible for me to create captions for this video and possible any others :) My grandpa lives in Russia and does not know anything about the world :) I would like to open his eyes on growing tomatoes with the help of your channel! PS the auto captions are not sufficient enough
Glad I watched, very helpful thanks
That pH test kit could also help you correct those bald spots in the grass around your plot.
You are an awesome person to learn from. I’m 71 and love gardening but never did it right till watching you and learning the neuonces of gardening. My crops have gotten better every year as I learn!
I like your presentation skills , keep it up
I have the same Machete at home bought it at a garage sale in Kalgoorlie from the local butcher many years ago........
very usefull info and exemples, merci,
following you from Québec. i love your way
spot on, shop stuff when not growing. home grown it always better, the freshness and taste. there is no compassion, the first thing I ever grew was tomatoes.
This was interesting. I'm growing in fabric pots in a limited space. I did get a pH sensor and it seems to be about as accurate as a probe can be. I used many bags of premixed potting soil to fill the pots. The cucumbers and tomatoes are doing really great. The peppers, not so much. I have harvested just two peppers.
I like those fabric growing bags but haven't tried them yet - they're a great idea! 🙂👍
@@Selfsufficientmedoes the vinigar really work .to increase acidity ...
Something just happened to my garden a bush turkey attacked and ate my onion and my new lettuce so I’m wondering if you can help
You are the best CZcamsr ever
I like your channel, done subscribed.
Hi , Enjoyed this video. The Easiest and quickest way to introduce acidity to your soils is to add a Cup of white vinegar to 9 litres of water and water it into your beds.Check your PH after 2 weeks and do it again if you need to. Quick ,easy safe and cheaper than the rest.👍
Nice video and very well thought out, well spoken and to the point. Thank you¡
What kind of sad person would dislike the video?
a downvote is nearly equal to an upvote for youtube algorithms, so they're actually helping him. hahahahaha. I think that's pretty funny, don't you?
Troglodytes who go around downvoting everything because they are....sad.
I suppose a down vote could mean that the viewer didn't get the information he or she wanted from the video. So, it can be about expectations in this case, since there's no questionable actions going on as in some videos. But it's possibly just someone who thinks they can do better. Who knows?
someone who knows what they're doing...
A contrarian.
Nice work and the honesty is appreiciated!
Good something new I've learned today thanks Mark for teaching us how to do it
You are awesome! Thank you for making these so fun and interesting to watch!!!
Gday Mark great video with lots of information Thanks Mate
Just found your channel, love the content! How did you make the garden beds with the corrugated material?
I thought this was a great vid, very interesting to see the soil PH in the different beds. My local landscaping supply place has a mix that's 1\3 sand, 1\3 soil, and 1\3 green waste compost. I tried it for raised beds last year and it was horrible. I moved it to new beds this year mixed 50/50 with composted horse manure and what a huge difference! I can only imagine how much better it will get with some age, but this gives me an idea, maybe I should test the soil to make sure it's on the right track. Thanks for all the great vids!
I agree with you on "growing" your soil over time or mixing your own. I've never had much initial success with soil from a commercial supplier 👍🙂
It's kind of the bummer part of building new raised beds. Either spend a fortune on premium bagged soil or save money and try to get by until the worms can get in there and break the soil down for you. I'm fortunate to have a neighbor bring me unlimited horse manure, so I opt to try and build up the cheaper soil, but it takes lots of patience, lol.
@Oshe Shango I've used it in the past with mostly good results as long as it is amended and fertilized, but the last batch had way too much sand and soil and compacted pretty bad.
Thanks mate
Love ya vids,
First ever comment. Worth it. Legend ❤️
I would like to see some actual tests done on various PH. Try growing tomatoes in PH 7, 8 and 9 and see the impact on the yield.
I just got into gardening. Love it, but it takes patience, something i dont have much
Really well explained mate. I’m off to test my beds!
If you listen to lecture by Elaine Ingham, you'll know that plant roots will adjust the pH around it to it's liking. For me, it's more important to use compost and have healthy soil with good gas exchange (loamy, not waterlogged), the plant will take care of itself with enough nutrients. I am concerned with pH of the water when it come to hydroponic growing.
The ph level requirements of my soil for the efficient nutrient uptake of my fruittrees, taught me much about my own ph level needs for nutrient uptake.
As a result I discovered basically on my own: THAT you cannot consume milk or yogurt with animal protein or fats. It will neutralize natural stomach acids needed to metabolize fats and protein.Thus your stomach need to be predominantly acidic for meat eaters. Make sense??
Enjoy your work Mark from Sunny South Africa.
It does make sense Stafford and I think eating lacto pickled foods helps also as does vinegar etc and perhaps a glass of wine with a meal 😉 cheers mate 👍
we follow a great channel with pleasure
Great job.
Keep posting Videos. Get one here thanks buddy
You can add peatmoss to that raised bed. It is pretty acidic and an instant fix. Sulfur can take quite some time.
We have one of those pH probes you mentioned and I find the readings will vary as you push it into the soil. You need to take a few readings and average them out. I have the test kit you used, but it's buried somewhere in our shed, or at the back of a cupboard, so hasn't been used for some time. It'd be interesting to compare the two methods. The probe is definitely easier to use.
Yeh, I purchased one of those McGregor two-pronged probes & the thing never worked from day dot. A total dud. So I replaced it with the one Mark demonstrated, a Gardman ... & wallah.
Very well done, I keep my water pH in check too. I think bad pH is the root problem in most unsuccessful growing attempts.
Yes water ph is a good point! Cheers 🙂👍
Love your video's champ
I liked the video. I have been struggling with my garden since we bot this new place two seasons now. I test the soil at the beginning of the the season and found it was way to alkaline. I didn't know how to handle it. I put sawdust and straw down but it has not help things grow. I will add more this fall and spring and hope it works out. Tired on my tomatoes not producing.
Try digging in some good quality compost also 👍🙂
Good morning Mark , from the u.s.a. thank you for another great video. I always question and wonder. Have you ever tested your water ??
Always great info!
Thank you for doing the videos!
Fun too!
Great video!
Very good you have a great experiment
Also, your error is now gone, so lesson learned! Perfect.
I've had the exact same thing happen to me recently when I tested my recently purchased veggie mix from landscape supplier. Advertised as 2/3 garden soil and 1/3 mushroom compost and perfect for immediate plantjng, my veggies are showing slow growth and my broad beans are suffering with severe leaf curl. pH test indicated soil around the 8.5-9. I've now purchased that exact sulphur product to try and increase acidity. Hopefully I can correct the pH at least a little and not miss the spring time planting.
Thanks for reaffirming what I had thought.
Try adding sphagnum peat moss to the soil as well since it's also very acidic.
Whey, the bi-product of yoghurt & cheese, increases acidity. Dilute it 50:50 with water & spread round rhododendrons, blueberries, grape etc.
This was so interesting, thanks for the advice. Last year I had beans and tomatoes together, the tomatoes were fantastic, but the beans didn’t do well at all, maybe the soil was a bit too acidic,I will be soil testing for sure this season.
Very well presented. Army machette digging tool, awsome 👍
I really don't have a green thumb, but its very interesting to watch your content. And satisfying.
You made me curious to ask my wife about her tomatoes.
Keep it up, furthermore you have a new subscriber from Germany.
Thank you! 🙂👍
Thanks Mark, great video, very informative
The ph of the water you use on them affects the soil, too. Not tank or rainwater, but town water can be way out.
Never too late, to learn new tricks.
Great video. Gotta test my wicking buckets You're Loved more than you know
Awesome video brother. Thank you.
I have been binging on ur content and it's really been helping me grow better marijuana. Thank you for your dedication!
P.S I also use my machete just like that it's really the only tool I have other than that three-prong thingy i dig weeds with lol
It's a good thing to check your soil PH if you use things like wood ash in your beds. Maybe in Australia most soils are a bit acidic to start with, BUT, as a person in the USA, you really should check your PH. I am glad you posted this video SSM. Just for those that don't know their soil PH.
Doesn't the ash equate to the same effect humans on a meat diet will have when eating meat with milk or yogurt ( strong alkaline) instead of red wine or ACV( apple cider vinegar) which is more acidic?
Thanks Julie! 🙂
@@staffordgeduld7470 I'd have never even thought about that if you hadn't mentioned it here. I personally like to eat dairy products after a night of drinking booze, it helps my stomach a bit, maybe Vodka is acidic?
Great job sir 👍
Very interesting,
Very interesting & helpful, thank you 🌻
Thank you Kathryn! 🙂👍
I had never seen an old-school PH tester... I hate it lol... thanks though, that's a good video.
Made me realize how important a good meter is, much prefer not waste my time on PH testing.
I think a more accurate way to measure soil ph is to invest in a digital probe meter (cheap hobby type is fine). Measure out a couple tablespoons of soil and a equal amount of distilled water (7ph) , let sit overnight stirring once in awhile. Filter through a coffee filter to clear and test. Think you will find the results more accurate, assuming your ph meter is calibrated.
Educational
Great video super informative
Can you do a video on the best type of soil for different plants i.e passion fruit, dragon fruit. Thanks
Noted! Thank you 🙂👍
:-) yup wood ash about on par pound per pound as you would adjust ph with lime slap you wrist mark
I bought some compost from a garden center here in the US, trying to support local business, blahblahblah, and didn't use it everywhere so could see the difference between that and other amendments I used. I ended up with leaf spot (never had it before), mosaic virus (ditto)...man, what a disaster. I'll have to solarize it all at the end of the season to be able to use those beds again next year. Never again!
@Oshe Shango I'd love to do that, but with a 2000 square foot garden, most of it new, in concrete-hard clay, it's hard to make that much waste to help the soil sufficiently! I'm working on it, though, volunteering to rake neighbors' lawns and so on. It'll take some years to get it where I want it.
No Update on your High Alkaline soil??? Did fix the problem yet? I can't wait to see the results.
Look at the stick @ 11 minutes, it's purple. It is alkaline. Soil is greenish purple white, the green is not picked up by the camera if it is.
Nice video buddy, I having problems for a wile with pH soil and I don't know why I always buy soil at the same garden center!!!@#$@@
Hoping for a follow up on the alkali bed.