Lawn and Garden Soil Testing | West Metro Twin Cities

The reason the rest of the program works

We test in spring and again in fall, then let the results set the fertilization and turf plan for the season ahead.

Spring soil test to set the turf and bed program before the growing season starts
Fall soil test to check what the season did and set up next spring
Samples pulled from the areas that behave differently, rather than one sample standing in for the whole property
pH read alongside nutrient levels, since locked-out nutrients look identical to missing ones
Fertilization rates and products set from the results rather than a standard schedule
Plain explanation of what came back and what we're changing because of it

Feeding without testing is guessing

A thin, pale lawn can be short on nitrogen. It can also have plenty of nitrogen sitting in soil at a pH where the turf can't take it up. Those two problems look the same from the driveway and need opposite responses. Feeding harder on the second one wastes the product and the season.

Soil also moves. Clay pockets, sandy stretches, a back yard under mature trees, and a hot south-facing strip along the drive don't behave alike, and none of them stay the same over years of care. Testing twice a year is what keeps the turf and bed program pointed at your property instead of a general one.

Timing: spring before the program starts, and again in fall

Part of recurring Lawn and Garden care

Care aimed at what your property is short on

Fertilization that fits the soil

Test results set the product and the rate. That means the lawn and beds get fed for what they're missing, rather than a rate that happens to be typical for the metro.

Problems named instead of guessed at

Thin turf, pale foliage, and plants that never quite take off usually trace back to something specific in the soil. A test turns that into an answer you can act on.

Better results over years, not just this season

Correcting pH and building soil takes more than one application. Testing every spring and fall is what makes it possible to see whether the correction is working.

Have questions? We've got the answers.

How often do you test?

Spring and fall, every year, as part of recurring Lawn and Garden care. Spring sets the program for the season. Fall shows what the season did and shapes what goes in before winter.

What does the test actually look at?

pH, and the nutrient levels that drive turf and ornamental performance. pH matters as much as the nutrients themselves, because soil that's too acidic or too alkaline locks up nutrients that are already there.

Do you test the beds as well as the lawn?

Yes. Turf and planting beds often differ on the same property, especially where beds have been mulched for years and the lawn hasn't. Sampling both is what keeps the bed feeding from being a copy of the lawn program.

Can I just fertilize without testing?

You can, and most properties on a standard program are doing exactly that. It works until it doesn't. When a lawn stays thin through a full season of feeding, the answer is usually in the soil, and without a test there's no way to know which direction to move.

What happens if the results show a problem?

We tell you what came back, what it means for your lawn and beds, and what we're changing in the program because of it. Corrections like pH adjustment happen over seasons, not in one visit, and we'll be straight with you about the timeline.

Soil Testing