- Soils with a high pH level can be become compacted easily and have poor drainage during heavy rains. Most plants dislike sweet soil because most prefer a neutral pH level. Acid-loving plants such as tomatoes will grow very poorly in alkaline-rich soils. Alkaline soils can occur naturally in various parts of the country. Raise the alkalinity content by adding lime to the soil. Agricultural lime will raise the pH level over time. The lime must be mixed into the soil as it will slowly migrate into the ground with the moisture content. Changing alkaline soils into a neutral or acid level also takes time, and certain practices are being tested. One place to begin is by taking soil samples and sending them to your extension service for a test. Most extension services provide this test at little to no cost.
- Growers in areas that have a high pH level have begun adding wood char and ashes directly into the soil. It's not a slash and burn practice but a controlled practice of removing field debris, burning that wood and plowing it back into the soil. Ashes from woodstoves can be spread over garden beds during the winter and then turned back into the soil for lowering the pH level in gardens. Another practice is to annually burn off unwanted plant and weed debris from the garden once all plant material has died back. That burned material is turned back into the soil and left until spring planting. The resulting winter and spring moisture content will then work the material through the soil and aid in lowering the pH level.
- All chemical fertilizers contain some form of ammonia. This ammonia contains nitrogen, which is required for all plant growth. Over time, annual distribution of nitrogen-rich, ammonia-based fertilizers will acidify the soil. Warmer areas of the country have soils that will react faster to adding these chemicals in lowering the pH level. A danger to overfertilizing any soil is two-fold. Water runoff must be considered because heavy nitrogen fertilizers entering creeks, streams and rivers can adversely affect the water's health. This includes chemicals added to urban area lawns and gardens. Too much nitrogen or ammonia in the ground also can raise the salts level in soil. These salts can be flushed from the ground but may take many years to dilute. Soils with a heavy salt content can cause plants to burn and die. An easy way to treat alkaline or sweet soils is to test the level of pH and follow the recommendations of the extension service in your area.
