Soil Testing Results in my garden in CA

[Redbaron]

Originally Posted by Ms. Jitomate

Well, I put more time researching this high level of zinc in my soil and I found this article from a Plant and Soil, June 1978, www.springerlink.com/index/3137N50553PV5585.pdf which states that it could stunt your corn. Corn was the last vegetable planted there this past summer and I did get the shortest corn stalks from previous years. I had no idea why. I thought it was weather related. It states,

"At 15.9 ppm Zn level, the growth of maize became stunted and this effect intensified with further increase in zinc level."

So I researched where this zinc may be coming from and I find another article from Clemson University, http://www.clemson.edu/public/regula...onutrients.pdf.
It states,

"In old peach orchards, zinc soil toxicity can occur following years of applying zinc-containing fungicides. Repeated use of sludge, slag, or poultry litter, all of which can contain high
concentrations of zinc, may result in soil zinc toxicity. The potential for a zinc toxicity can be
reduced or eliminated by liming the soil to raise the water pH above 6.0 or 6.5, the pH level
normally recommended for the crop growing or to be grown."

Well, I have been adding my chicken manure exactly 3 times in my three years I have had chickens. And, I have purchased chicken manure from the garden stores and added that to my soil prior to owning chickens. Could this be the real source of the increase in zinc? I thought chicken manure was one of the best organic fertilizers. Any thoughts?

Too much of a good thing can be bad. And most certainly while chicken manure is a good thing, it is very concentrated as manures go. So yes, this could be the reason, especially when you were buying it from factory farms.

Healthy soil contains 5-11% carbon in the A layer. You had 14% or so. That is OK in and of itself, but if that high carbon content was the result of mainly chicken manure instead of more mild herbivore manure like cow, horse, rabbit etc....Then sure that could be the root of the problem.

Just keep in mind, compared to most people your "problems" are minuscule! Your soil is awesome! Just give it a rest for a bit with the high powered additives! Give your soil biology some time to digest everything. And be sure to follow the instructions of the soil test. Don't forget the dolomite. That will help your soil biology deal with it all.