Soil from leaves

[Brynk]

I cook my own mulch & soil from leaves

I've use the older brew as topsoil for lawn areas. The base soil is called timber soil

I just tested an area I topped and seeded last spring to determine what additives to apply. I'm getting a lot of brown spots. I spread a fertilizer of 29-3-4 about 2 weeks ago to help w/ the nitrogen.

ph = 7.0-7.5 Nitrogen = Low Phosphorous = Low Potassium = High

Wouldn't soil from leaves be highly acidic? I believe the test shows mild alkalinity, right?

Thanks, Barry

[KC]

No. Depends on the plant they come from, but I would not think "highly" acidic. You would probably get more acid from the high nitrogen fertilizer than from the leaves.

Right, if the results of your test are accurate. Are you sending your soil off for testing or using a DIY test kit? If DIY, results can vary quite a bit.

KC

[Brynk]

It's a DIY kit and it's been around for a "few" years

[KC]

I once participated in an experiment where we compared hi end lab analyzers against various DIY kits using the same soil samples. DIY kits averaged .5 variation from the lab equipment, with the worse case being 1.5 different. So DIY kits can give you a ballpark idea of your soil, but don't rely on them for accuracy. BTW, many labs will not test for nitrogen levels unless you specify the test. That's because nitrogen levels are so erratic because of so many factors.

KC

[Brynk]

Thanks KC I was sure the test would show high acid and was set to add lime Now I'm not sure what to add.

I would like to reseed ASAP, but other than the 19-3-4 fertilizer spread a couple weeks ago, I'm not sure what to add before seeding

This area was seeded this spring and developed a nice lawn til about a month ago We've had an abundance of rain all spring and summer in northern Illinois The ground beneath the topsoil is sandy soil and stone and perks quite fast so it's not a "too wet" situation.

Now it's 50% browned out.

Barry