Botanic Garden >> Gardening > >> Question and Answer >> About Gardening

Soil pH Testing with Litmus Paper: Accurate but Costly

Litmus paper works but strips come in ranges (wide 1–11, narrow for ±0.5 pH). At $5–10 per dispenser, it’s cheaper to pay the Extension service $5–8 for a lab test.

About Gardening: Watering Nepenthes: Aqua Globes vs. African Violet Pots; Why Home Soil Test Kits Fall Short and Professional Testing Is Worth It; Soil Testing: pH, Nutrients, Lab vs. DIY, and Amendment Strategies; When to Retest Soil After Fertilizing; Phosphorus-Free Fertilizers: Why They're Pushed in the Southeast; Are Cheap Soil pH Probes Accurate? Why Professional Testing Beats Gadgets; Composting Shredded Paper: Safe, Easy, and Great for Soil; Acidifying Soil for Azaleas: Aluminum Sulfate Works Faster Than Miracid; Hollies Drowning in Amended Clay: Fix the Bathtub Effect; Gypsum vs. Lime: Soil Chemistry for Gardeners

Garden Articles

Soil Testing in Arizona: Private Labs, High Cost, Nearby Alternatives

Recycled Office Paper as Biodegradable Seedling Pots: Safe and Practical

Using Shredded Office Paper as Garden Mulch: Ink Safety and Practical Tips

Soil Testing and Beyond: A Complete Fall Lawn Improvement Plan for Long Island

Epsom Salts on Lawns: Myth vs. Reality

Why Tar Paper Harms Garden Soil (And Better Weed Barriers)

Propagating Houseplants from Cuttings: Stem, Leaf, Cane & Branch

Plants

DIY Weed Tea Fertilizer: Benefits, Risks, and the Anaerobic Danger

Bougainvillea Care: Soil, pH, Fertilizer, and Flowering Tricks

Using Pine Stump Chips as Soil Amendment in Clay

Pro-Mix HP: Why Commercial Potting Mixes Kill Carnivorous Plants

Soil Testing for Vegetable Gardens: A Step-by-Step Protocol

Using Egg Cartons as Seed Starters

Brown Patch in Zoysia: Why Soil Tests Won't Detect It