completely ph challenged lol

Okay...now I'm reasonably intelligent...or so I thought...lol...can someone explain soil ph to me...it just won't sink in...my ph is 7.0 now, I believe, that is on the high side of the middle but, what does that mean...lol...are the higher numbers acider or the lower numbers and is that good or bad...or is EVERY plant different or are most in the middle and just some like azalea and blueberries pickier? It's explained in 100 articles but, it just is swimming in my head. Can some one put it in just a few words for the ph challenged...lol...pretend I'm a 5 year old because I feel like one trying to figure this out...lol...Thanks for you help...

Big hugs in advance for your help.

Hugs,

Jamie

7.0 is neutral, right in the middle. A pH that is higher than 7 is alkaline, and one that is lower than 7 is acidic. Being right around neutral is a good place to be--if you're too alkaline or too acidic that will limit what you can grow, so being close to neutral gives you the biggest range. Most plants will do fine with a pH around neutral so you should be able to grow pretty much anything you want (assuming it would do well in your climate of course). There are some things like azaleas and blueberries that prefer acidic soil, but in your neutral soil if you feed them with a fertilizer for acid loving plants that may be all they need to keep them happy.

You are a doll baby! Now that makes sense! I just needed it without all the extra info that seems to come in the articles. Thanks so much for taking the time to write that. You are really kind.

Hugs,

Jamie

Glad to help! :-)

well I don't know a ph from a phd. My advice is to plant the sucker, water it , add a little miricle grow and do a lot of praying lol.

LoL! I've been informed my ph is just about as good as you can get but, your thought is about like mine. It's just so blinking hot here right now I couldn't plant for a few weeks and I thought if I could improve or change something I would...but, I'm just getting ready to start planting the suckers this weekend...that is if it doesn't finally rain!
Won't complain though...in the worst draught here since 1887 so I'll wait to plant if it wants to rain away...lol...I think I'll probably be out dancing in it...lol...Thanks for the sage wisdom...

Particularly if your plants are going in a sunny area I'd try to hold off on planting until the weather cools off in the fall, the plants will suffer less transplant shock and you won't have to be quite as vigilant on watering, etc.

Also, regarding adding Miracle Gro when you plant--it's generally best to wait and let things get established a little bit before you fertilize them.

Thank you e! I did know about the sun and being careful from another source but, it is ALWAYS nice to hear hints from those in or near my zone on fertilizing etc. because we are a little different...or is that all zones?

mrsjamiep, from past experience I have found that no matter what you do in times of drought things will not grow. Therefore maybe a plastic flower here and there will fill in untill the rain returns, ain't gardening fun!!!

lol Yep! And because the Arroyo (river) I live on is Salt water - Very salty - it can't be used for irrigation either...but, I'm having fun getting everything ready and they are saying possible showers for the weekend so...I'm using the prayers there while I curse the plastic flower section at walmart!!!! ooooooo maybe they have some fruits and veggies too!

homemade sand dunes may be an option, can't imagine working with salty soil that would for sure chalenge my limited gardening skills. I have a plant encyclopedia that stays next to my bible on the coffee table it keeps me focused when I don't know what to do for what lol

I know the one is always a good idea for the coffee table! I just might have to invest in the other to join it...a little further help never hurt...lol...

yeah if by chance moonhowl,ecrane and Jim41 is not on here on a emergency day need to have a backup for sure! Hope you get some rain.

Waiting until fall to plant is more important in hot summer climates than in cooler areas, but the fertilizer thing is true anywhere, it's always best to let the plant get established a little bit first before you fertilize it. If you want to give it something to help it when you first plant it, there are some root stimulator products out there (Superthrive is one that comes to mind) that have vitamins and things that supposedly help plants get going faster, those are fine to use. From my personal experience I honestly can't tell if the root stimulators do anything, but some people swear by them and they can't hurt anything.

ecrane while we are on the subject, I cut some branches off my azalia put root hormone on the end and stuck it in a pot of potting soil Do you think it will root?

How big are the branches you tried to root? Generally small pieces will have a better chance at rooting, so if these are big fat branches I'm not sure that'll work. But if the bigger branches have some smaller branches coming off of them, you could try to root those instead. Here are a couple links that might help you
http://www.suite101.com/article.cfm/propagation_seed_starting/105657
http://www.hgtv.com/landscaping/azalea-cuttings/index.html
http://www.tjhsst.edu/~dhyatt/rhodocuttings.html

Ecrane, you are remarkable! How do you remember all this stuff????

I didn't have to remember anything on that one--Google is a wonderful tool! LOL

when I google I get search engine overload and get off in left field and forget what I was looking for lol Try bing

Haha reminds me of those Bing commercials...They're waiting...Who's waiting?? LOL!

And I thought I was the only frustrated surfer, cute commercial for sure

I don't have any complaints about Google--but in cases like this I generally know at least something about the subject so I can quickly skim through a couple of sites and know if the info they're giving is pretty accurate or way off base, so that makes it a lot easier than searching for something you don't know much about. For gardening subjects, if you're googling something you really know absolutely nothing about, then I would gravitate toward sites from universities and cooperative extension offices, those will tend to have more accurate information. Gardening magazines are usually decent sources as well. Nurseries can be an OK source as long as you know the nursery is trustworthy, but there are some questionable ones out there so I'd try to verify what they're saying with one of the more reliable sources.

mrsjamiep jump back in, didn't mean to hog your thread. Ask e-crane he will steer you right!

Actually I'm a she :-)

well between moon howling at the moon and you driving a crane just figured wrong lol sorry gonna have to address yall as Miss-----.

Flower- not a problem...I ask questions when I have them. It's too easy to get on info overload. There occationally is just something I need put in as simple a terms possible. I believe that there just isn't enough meat in some simple subjects so they add fluff to fill and article and sometimes after 2 or 3 you get lost in the fluff and just need someone who has dug in the dirt to break it down for me.

Ms. ecrane...just want to let you know I'm impressed by your knowledge and your willingness to admit that you look up what you don't know...that's the sign of a true expert! I am also impressed by your lean toward the lack of gender biais...not something I've ever much understood (gb)..wasn't exposed to it much at home...always impresses me when people live their lives ignoring it and making there way without it...operating a crane and howling at the moon would seem to fit that...lol...my hats off!

My username actually doesn't have anything to do with what I do for a living--believe me, you would not want to be anywhere near a crane if I was operating it! LOL

LoL! Sounds like me! I just assumed Flowers knew you, sorry...lol...could be an interesting adventure anyway...perhaps a fall back profession!...lol

well guess she could be my mamma she gets me out of a lot of potential garden mistakes LOL Talking about names I swear I didn't smoke that stuff of the 60"s