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How do I lower my ph?

bucdout57

bucdout57

Just checked my soil and it looks to be very alkaline. It measured at 8 and a few at 7 but all overly high. Not sure if my meter is accurate but it is a three way meter. For moisture light and ph. The other two are pretty spot on. I just watered my plants and the meter read wet and the light is on point as well. So am dreading my soil being so high. Gonna head out yo Home Depot tomorrow morning and get another reader just to make sure. But wondering if anyone has grown peppers in such alkaline soil? Might be why I haven't grown a good bounty last year and the reason my plants are looking so little this year. I just went out last week and bought some blood meal and bone meal and garden tone to try and get them all bigger and try and get some pods going. Put them all in a few days ago and they are starting to pick up.

Okay now to my question. Is it possible to lower my ph from an 8 to a 6.5 or 7 rapidly?
And is this the correct ph to have my soil at to provide my plants with all the needed nutrients? Or it is supposed yo be lower? If that's the case can I expect to get many pods?

Currently I have about sixty something plants going in 5 to 15 gallon containers with about a two inch mulch topping. More than half are with promix hd and organic compost from a nursery by my work. Others are just with organic compost and worm castings and mulch mixed in. Looking yo resolve this soon. So please help me figure this out. Really getting frustrated. If it's not one thing it's another. Thanks to all that reply.
 
Those 3 way meters are horribly inaccurate. You can take a sample to the nursery and they should be able to test it for you. I'd do that before trying to adjust ph. They would also be able to direct you on the right route to take in lowering your PH. 
Not sure how well the ones you add water to work. Probably what a nursery uses 
 
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I had one those crappy 3 way meters and then bought a really expensive soil ph probe and Had my soil tested. (when was growing canna in soil)
 
PH probe was pretty much on money, 3 way meter was way off. 
 
That’s exactly how I got into trouble earlier this year, using a cheap probe and then some old pool strips to measure the PH. After screwing things up and nearly frying my plants in acid I finally went to the Hydro Store and bought the drops, which I think the “Rapitest” uses too. They seem to be more accurate and proved how far off the other two were.
 
I keep a 50 gallon drum of water and sometimes use pool PH down, but lately have been just using vinegar. If you use vinegar you need to use it right away or a slime starts to grow. Now days rather than water my plants all the time with the adjusted PH water I just use it when using nutes. Seems to be working this way and I can add my nutes and make one 50 gallon batch rather preparing 2- two gallon cans over and over again. 
 
juanitos said:
just sprinkle some lime in, it won't hurt anything.
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Funny just came back from Home Depot returned the lime because it states it raise the ph and bought some organic soil acidifier to lower the ph. Read online that it is safer than aluminum sulfate and wouldn't kill off my plants if i use the incorrect amount. Just saying still learning.
 
I didn't realize you were in LA, disregard the rainwater comment XD
 
Honestly would probably be all you need if you could get it.  Compost tea instead maybe?
 
Yeah, lime is calcitic, it's used for raising pH. 
 
You could put some peat on-top of the soil which will help.
Or you can use elemental sulpur  / flowers of sulpur, which is quite safe but takes some time to work.
 
Sulphate of iron is a good an "in-between" option between elemental sulphur and aluminium sulphate.
Its faster acting then sulphur, but not as hard as aluminium sulphate.
 
Also, its often iron def which shows itself when the PH is too high. (off the top of my head iron starts to get locked out just over Ph7). So the sulphate of iron will have the double effect of reducing PH and alivating iron def that often goes with high PH
 
I use a Rapitest 4 way meter. (pH, Moisture, Light, and Fertility) and it is pretty accurate.  

How do you know its accurate? All test i have seen shows that almost all multi tester are wrong. They show +-1 pH or more wrong, and that is much.
 
nzchili said:
You could put some peat on-top of the soil which will help.
Or you can use elemental sulpur  / flowers of sulpur, which is quite safe but takes some time to work.
 
Sulphate of iron is a good an "in-between" option between elemental sulphur and aluminium sulphate.
Its faster acting then sulphur, but not as hard as aluminium sulphate.
 
Also, its often iron def which shows itself when the PH is too high. (off the top of my head iron starts to get locked out just over Ph7). So the sulphate of iron will have the double effect of reducing PH and alivating iron def that often goes with high PH
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Gonna look into the sulphate of iron. Thanks. Also still haven't had a chance to put in the organic soil acidifier yet? Busy with work. Bought several soil and n-p-p testers from lowes as well but plan on first testing the soil that using the soil acidifier if needed. Anyone ever grow something in soil with a ph higher than 7??
 
bucdout57 said:
Gonna look into the sulphate of iron. Thanks. Also still haven't had a chance to put in the organic soil acidifier yet? Busy with work. Bought several soil and n-p-p testers from lowes as well but plan on first testing the soil that using the soil acidifier if needed. Anyone ever grow something in soil with a ph higher than 7??
Click to expand...
 
I have had my PH rise to levels above PH8, but the peppers become unhappy as nutes get locked out.
 
PH 7, or just above is fine though. Many people, including myself, use dolomite lime in their mixes which buffers the PH to 7 and helps the PH resist rising/falling.
 
nzchili

Dolomite lime in the mix huh??? Good to know for next season. I plan on adding garden lime to all my containers for sure. But wondering what my soil ph really is. Just got home from work and my back yard isn't to well lit. Another day lost. Hopefully tommorrow . Thanks guys for all you info. Each and everyone of you.
 
pwb said:
How do you know its accurate? All test i have seen shows that almost all multi tester are wrong. They show +-1 pH or more wrong, and that is much.
Click to expand...
 
I guess I was referring to the fertility which is all I use it for.  I mix up a batch of Technaflora nutes and the meter reads "ideal" when submerged in the solution
 
edit: the solution is also supposed to be a pH of 6.2, which the meter also accurately reads. <_<  I'd say it is a good estimate of the pH
 
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