Determine the pH of the garden soil

Possibilities of determination

When determining the pH value in the garden, it is not about every decimal place. It is usually sufficient to identify a clear trend. Therefore, four aids can be considered for the determination:

• Analysis sets
• Indicator strips
• Red cabbage
• Vinegar and baking powder

Analysis sets

Analysis sets can be bought cheaply in hardware stores. The process is something like this:

• it will be an approx. Dug a 5-10 cm deep hole in the ground
• then the hole is filled with distilled water
• The test set's measuring stick is inserted into the mud that forms
• after a short waiting time, the measured value can be read off

Indicator strips

Measuring the pH value with an indicator strip is a little cheaper. For this purpose, a soil sample is taken and mixed 1: 1 with distilled water. The indicator strip is immersed in it. Its discoloration is then compared with a color scale on the sales packaging and the associated pH value is read off.

Red cabbage

Red cabbage is a cheap home remedy for measuring pH. However, only the three states neutral, alkaline and acid can be read off. This method does not provide exact measured values.

1. Heat distilled water.
2. Cut the red cabbage into small pieces and add it to the water.
3. Let everything go through for several hours.
4. Sift the mixture. Catch the purple juice as you go.
5. Add two tablespoons of the soil sample you took earlier.
6. Observe the change in color. Purple stands for neutral, pink for acidic and blue or green indicate an alkaline value.

Vinegar and baking powder

Fill one beaker with water and baking soda and one with vinegar. Add a tablespoon of each soil sample. If the ground is acidic, it will sizzle in the mug with the baking powder. An alkaline sample, on the other hand, will cause a similar reaction in the vinegar cup. If nothing happens, you are dealing with neutral ground.

The values

Results of the methods that provide numbers are to be interpreted as follows:

• Values ​​between 6.5 and 8 are in the neutral range
• Values ​​below 6 are acidic
• the lower, the more acidic
• Values ​​above 8 are characteristic of alkaline soils
• the higher the value, the more alkaline