OGrubber (or anyone): soil analysis results - Help

[Dumbo]

Yup. You are right.

As stated above, I skimmed to the part that I wanted in regards to the CEC and missed the rest.

I re-read all after I posted and realized the error in what I stated.

At least now I know you read it.
Let's not see it as an error, but rather a test and you passed? hehe

Yeah, that CEC value you have is way up there, at the end of the scale. And this was 10-years ago! Is this all due to cover crops? They only say decomposed organic material, but that's a LOT of decomposed organic material. And/Or is this trucked in and complimented every so often?

I wish you would do this again in the fall or spring. I'd love to see the comparison from then and now.

[Dumbo]

I don't see why not with gypsum, but for our alkalinity and sulphates... it is beyond my competence

This was sitting in the back of my mind for a little while. So I found the time today to give it a quick once-over.

It's beyound me as well.

So far the best link I found that explains the interaction of calcium sulphate (gypsum) with aluminum in clay soil is found here:
Section 2.3.1.4 Soil: http://www.ec.gc.ca/lcpe-cepa/default.a ... 1&offset=9

It seems at the pH garden users are at, a little below 7, there will be a hydrolysis reaction. Aluminum will precipitated out as aluminum hydroxide and the soil can get slightly acidic with the liberation of H+ from the hydrolysis reaction (the breaking of a water molecule to OH- + H+)

I stopped there because it got to heavy and I have no good soil chem books to follow.

It gets a heck of a lot more complex than this though. for every 0.5 increase or decrease in pH value. Never knew all this. Very complex.

Also, it seems the addition of aluminum sulphate can make some plants flowers change colours and people add this to get the changing colour effect...