Conservation District Partners with K-State Research and Extension to Provide Free Soil Tests to Douglas County Residents

Proper soil nutrition is important for optimal plant growth. However, overapplication of fertilizers is both costly and a potential source of non-point source pollution to waterways. The Douglas County Conservation District partners with the Douglas County K-State Research and Extension office to provide free soil tests to homeowners and agricultural operators to help preserve water quality in our wetlands and streams.

Douglas County residents are eligible for free tests for their lawns & gardens and their agricultural fields. Home horticulture users can receive up to two free basic soil tests per year while ag producers can receive up to five free basic tests per year. Extension also has several more technical soil tests available at an additional charge.

In 2022, the Douglas County Conservation District covered the costs for 264 soil samples to be tested across the county.

Where to start? Proper collection of a representative soil sample is essential for the accuracy and analysis of test results. Follow these steps to obtain a good sample:

Decide if your field can be treated as one sample or needs to be broken down into separate smaller samples. If you believe the soil type, and the previous crop and fertilizer treatments are consistent across the field, treat it as one sample. If soil type and topography change across the field, different crops have been planted on different parts of the field, or there are problem spots, break the field down into smaller units to sample.

Using a soil probe, dig vertically to a depth of 4 inches for established fields such as brome, alfalfa, or a no-till field.

Fields that are worked up should have samples taken from 6 inches. Avoid sampling in old fence rows, dead furrows, low spots, feeding areas, and other areas that might give unusual results. If information on these unique areas is desired, obtain a separate sample from the site. 3

Take at least 10 – 15 samples from the field and mix the samples in a clean container to create a representative sample. The more sub-samples you take, the more assured you’ll be that soil test results are representative of your field. Bring approximately two cups of mixed soil to the Douglas County Extension Office in a paper bag. 4

Bring the soil sample(s) to Douglas County K-State Research and Extension, 2110 Harper St. Lawrence, KS 66046.

Samples should be dry. You can let samples air dry, but do not use heat to dry your samples. 5

Once submitted, you should have your results in 2-3 weeks. For additional information, please use the following link. https://www.douglas.kstate.edu/crops-livestock/testing/Soil_Testing. html