Mail-In Nutritional Soil Testing and Analysis
DCS offers custom nutritional testing and analysis for soil samples you ship to us. We are here to help you uncover what’s going on in your lawn or garden soil and troubleshoot any problems that you may be experiencing.
Ship or deliver your samples to our office and we will have them tested for pH, organic matter and essential macro and micronutrients at an accredited laboratory. We will follow up in 2 to 3 weeks with a lab report and an easy-to-read summary with recommendations that consider your intended crops and methodology, available fertilizers, and past amendments.
Download one of our submission forms and see our detailed sampling and packing instructions, below.
PrICING
$150.00 per sample + HST ($172.50)
Please include a cheque payable to DCS & Associates along with your soil shipment, or email sharon@dcsturf.com with an e-transfer. Make sure to indicate the name of your operation on the cheque or e-transfer, as it appears on your sample submission form.
Forms
DCS Soil submission form: Turf
DCS Soil Submission form: Garden
Sampling and Shipping Instructions
Walk the sampling area and with your trowel or soil probe, collect 10 or more 6-inch-deep soil cores. (We generally recommend 6” cores, but you should adjust your sampling depth to capture the root zone or plough depth, avoiding the subsoil below.) Make sure to obtain a good representational sample of the whole area. Put the composite sample in a strong paper bag or plastic zipper bag. If your area is larger than ten acres, or if you are interested in learning about variations in the soil throughout the area, collect multiple composite samples from the same field. In some cases, you will need a rubber hammer to push the probe deep enough into the soil.
Label samples clearly with your name and/or the name of your farm or facility and sample identification. Use a permanent marker to write directly on the paper bags. If using a plastic bag, include additional paper labels inside the bags, as the marker tends to rub off plastic during shipping.
Pack samples into a cardboard box and use newspaper to pack tightly so bags don’t shift in transit. Ship samples along with your cheque and submission form to:
DCS & Associates
550 Musquash Rd.
Gravenhurst, Ontario
P1P 1R2
Shippig TIP
For cost-effective shipping, allow your samples to dry out before packing. Using your hands or a rubber hammer, crush and mix the soil cores from each sample bag, and reduce each sample to one and a half (1 ½) cups of soil, removing any stones, roots, thatch, plant matter or other debris. Make sure each final processed sample is a well-combined representation of each original core sample.
Additional Testing
If you wish to use your soil test data for compliance with the Nutrient Management Act please contact bet@dcsturf.com.
We also offer testing and analysis for physical characteristics of soil and other growing media, such as particle size distribution and infiltration rate. Contact us at bet@dcsturf.com for more information and pricing.
In addition to soil, we are also able to test compost, manure, fertilizers and surface water as they contribute to the health of your soil. Please get in touch with us by email or telephone for these requests.