Balance Your Soil and Change Your Lawn with Omaha pH Testing!

April showers bring May flowers…and acidic soil. In the Midwest, rainfall removes calcium and magnesium and replaces them with acidic ions. The result is that your soil can become too acidic. How do you determine the pH level of your Omaha area lawn?

Omaha pH Testing

The best way to determine if your lawn is too acidic is by pH level testing. If right about now you find yourself wondering what pH levels are and how they affect your lawn, you have come to the right place! The term pH stands for “potential hydrogen”. Testing pH levels simply means measuring your lawn’s acidic or alkaline levels.

pH Scale

The soil’s pH scale runs from 0-14. The middle of the scale is called “Neutral” and is right at 7. Any number reading below 7 is acidic and anything over is alkaline. It is important to know your lawn’s level because it influences how easily your grass can take up nutrients from the soil. With too much acid or alkaline in the soil, nutrients will not dissolve, meaning your grass roots won’t thrive. If your lawn is too acidic, adding fertilizer still won’t produce the results you seek. Why? Simply put, if your soil pH level is not balanced, you are NOT getting the best results because fertilizers are not being used 100% efficiently.

Results of unbalanced pH levels

Increases in common weeds, diseases, and insect pests are all warning signs that your pH levels are not balanced and your soil is too acidic. To know for sure what is going on under the surface, call Paradise Lawns before you apply expensive fertilizers or start a maintenance program to determine your pH levels. We will test your levels and work with you to restore balance through Liming. Liming is the practice of applying an agent to reduce soil acidity. This raises your pH level and makes soil more favorable for turf grass growth. We like to see soils right around 6.5. This is just slightly acidic without any of the damaging results found when too acidic.

Balanced pH level benefits

By reducing your soil acidity and balancing your pH levels with liming, you should experience the following benefits:

•        Increased effectiveness of fertilizer in your grass.
•        Improved effectiveness of some herbicides used for weed control.
•        Reduced severity of some turf diseases.
•        Reduced severity of damage from pet urination.
•        Increased ability to breakdown thatch.
•        Healthier, lush and greener growing lawn.

Better soil equals better grass!

Call Dave NOW at 402-612-1527 about our organic lawn care program before May weeds take over!