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soil Worrying about soil pH

R

roadhouse

So I have finally decided on my soil mixture for my potted plants, and now I am worrying about what the pH will be. I want to be as close as possible to the optimal range because of course I want optimal peppers. Here is the mix I have chosen to go with, from the soil thread:

2 parts vermiculite
2 parts perlite
3 parts topsoil
3 parts peat
2 parts cow manure
1/2 part bonemeal

I am leaving out the bone meal for now. I don't have a pH test meter but I might try and acquire one so I can do a test. Based on this soil recipe omitting the bonemeal what can I expect the pH to be? I don't think it's specifically formulated for peppers and from what I gather their ideal pH is 6 to 6.5. Should I add some dolomitic lime instead and how much? FYI, the "parts" here are "cubic feet" in my mix.
 
For 3 cu ft of peat (about 22.5 gallons) I'd start with 9 cups of dolomite, wait a week and then test. That's with no bone meal in the mix and w/o knowing the PH of the cow manure or top soil, but should give you a starting point.
 
You can test the Ph and not have to guess. Make the mix, pour water through it and test the Ph with litmus paper.
 
willard3 said:
You can test the Ph and not have to guess. Make the mix, pour water through it and test the Ph with litmus paper.
Click to expand...

So, how accurate is that? I would also like to know the PH of my soil and only have litmus paper. Does this really work? I hope so, so tell me more. Please.
 
IMO, the best way to test the PH of a soil mix is to fill a container with it, fully saturate the mix with distilled water (PH neutral) and let it sit for an hour, then pour enough distilled water into the top of the container to displace a collected sample from the bottom for the test.
 
Silver_Surfer said:
IMO, the best way to test the PH of a soil mix is to fill a container with it, fully saturate the mix with distilled water (PH neutral) and let it sit for an hour, then pour enough distilled water into the top of the container to displace a collected sample from the bottom for the test.
Click to expand...

So you are saying to test the water after that second saturation?
 
^ Yeah, I'm not clear on that either. SS, could you go over that again please. It's the bottom thing I'm confused about.
 
After saturating the mix and letting it sit for an hour, only pour in enough distilled water to cause the small sample to drain from the bottom for the test. The second small application of water is used to cause the displacement of your test water that has been in the pot for an hour acquiring the PH of the mix.
 
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