HOMEMADE PH TESTER                                                       




Ever wondered how to test your soil and never had the time to figure out where 
your local county extension is - let alone have the time to get there? Well, 
here's a home test of soil that's useful if you just need to know the basics of  
how acid or alkaline your soil is.
 
Put enough skin of either red cabbage leaf or radish into a glass to make the 
water turn pink. Be sure to abraid the skin so that it releases that dye. The  
pinker the better.
 
Put about a half cup soil and a half cup water in a separate glass and stir it 
up well.  Let it sit for about a half hour to settle and steep. Take an 
eyedropper full of the soil water and add it, a drop at a time to the cabbage or 
radish water. If it turns red, your soil is acid, bluegreen - your soil is 
alkaline.  If it stays pink - neutral.
 
Some plants are excellent indicators of soil PH. Take Hydranga's for instance, 
they'll be bright pink or red where the soil leans to acid, and pretty blue-
green where the soil is more alkaline. Strawberries do well in acid soils while 
snapdragons hate it.
 
PH factors are quite important in a gardener's life - so a home test seems to be 
just the ticket to help the harried gardener cope.  Happy testing!