PH meter not working

Hi,

I just invested in a PH meter for the first time, having realised that I have made our naturally slightly acidic soil very acidic by repeatedly piling on manure and not liming. I'm a newbie, so bear with me . I followed the meter instructions very carefully and have taken several samples. The plot comes up as 6.5-6.7 PH, and I don't believe it. The brassicas are really struggling, but acid-tolerant veg are doing fine - I have been feeding well. Brassicas should be fine at that PH level shouldn't they? Hence my scepticism about the results. I would value any opinions before I tackle the seller of the meter. The meter is a Tenax. Has anyone else found these to be reliable/unreliable? Or have you found that brassicas do actually need a more alkaline soil than 6.5?

Laura

 

I bought one of those meters years ago and got all kinds of strange readings.
They may well have improved upon them these days but I doubt you can actually get a reliable reading from garden soil which is being added to regularly.

Why not just put a sprinkling of lime around your brassicas when you plant out, it keeps the slugs away as well.

 

Laura, that reading should be fine for your Brassicas, why not post a message in the Edible Garden section describing the symptoms and, if possible, a couple of pics.:thumb:

 

Hi Laurad.
That PH reading should be fine for your brassicas.
You could check your meter by altering the soil sample to something you know is very acid or alkaline.
Could you add some lime or vinegar to the sample and recheck the reading ?

Ph is not the only thing which affects how well brassicas do.
They like really firm ground.
If your ground is loose because it has been dug this year then firm the plants in - put your heel round them and stamp them in.

I'm sure you'll get other suggestions.

 

Thanks for those suggestions all. The ground is definitely firm enough. In fact if anything it's too firm generally. I am wondering if this is caused by lack of worms due to the acidity, because I don't see any of them if I turn the soil over. I will ask in the Edible garden section.