# Help acidifying the soil



## jha4aamu (Oct 16, 2017)

Seeking some advice from brighter minds than myself. My grass is nice and thick but haven't got the greenup I usually get this time of year (even after FAS/primo apps) I decided to test the pH of the soil and it's ranging between 7.0 and 7.2. Last season I was around 6.4 to 6.6 in most areas and the grass was noticeably greener. Any recommendations as to the most efficient/effective way to raise it?

Last year I was using a 32-0-4 synthetic fertilizer monthly. This year I switched to biweekly 5-4-0 milo. Both at 1lb N/k per month. Could that contributed at all?? TIA


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## Tsmith (Aug 11, 2017)

How are you testing your PH? I wouldn't trust one of those home kits as they are not reliable.

Is PH in your area normally on the high side? I'm in the northeast and we are generally on the lower side so we are always trying to raise our PH.

Jonathan Green has a product called Magical which there are two versions of, one for acidic soil to raise PH and another for akaline to lower it.

There are other products as well but if your PH is actually 7.0 - 7.2 that's not alarmingly high. I think it's just a late year for everyone due to the weather as we can't always count on the calendar. My lawn is just now starting to grow and look like it's in full greenup which is almost a month later than usual.


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## jha4aamu (Oct 16, 2017)

Tsmith said:


> How are you testing your PH? I wouldn't trust one of those home kits as they are not reliable.
> 
> Is PH in your area normally on the high side? I'm in the northeast and we are generally on the lower side so we are always trying to raise our PH.
> 
> ...


im not sure of the normal pH in my area (just outside of St. Louis) I know the 7.2 is within the acceptable range for KBG but just wondered if the slightly more alkaline number had anything to do w/ the lighter shade of green in the turf. I'm definitely going to grab a few bags of the Johnathan Green product and try it out.


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## Tsmith (Aug 11, 2017)

jha4aamu said:


> Tsmith said:
> 
> 
> > How are you testing your PH? I wouldn't trust one of those home kits as they are not reliable.
> ...


I wouldn't jump the gun yet and would instead recommend getting a soil test first to see what's really going on but I think it's just a late year for all of us


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## g-man (Jun 15, 2017)

Mine is at 8.1 and Milo or Scott green max does help it be green. Could you post an image?


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## Jconnelly6b (Mar 4, 2018)

@jha4aamu I would venture to guess that your late green up is due to the change in fertilizer. Milo is temperature activated, as the microbes need to be up and working to break down the organic N into useable N for the turf. Also if you had not used organic much in the past, you will need to build up "the herd" of microbes in the soil, as most salt based fertilizers actually kill them.

The synthetic N you were using is readily available to the plant as soon as you put it down, and is not dependent on temperature.

Did you put down a winterizer in the fall after top growth ceased? Either way, once the evenings warm up a bit you should see the lawn take off. We've all been impatient this year for green up, but it's coming. We are already in drought mode here in NJ.


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