11/19/2025
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ab4Kk9ORh8s
Current Research: "Bucket Tests"
We’re running three major tests, all designed to answer one big question: How accurate are the soil test numbers we base our fertilizer decisions on?
First, we’re comparing your current commercial lab to the Radicle Lab. We take one bucket of soil, mix it thoroughly, and send the exact same soil to both labs five or six different times.
This shows us two things: How much do the numbers vary?
And which lab is more repeatable? Because if the lab can’t give the same answer twice, how can we trust the recommendations?
Second, we’re testing lime response—how much lime it really takes to fix low pH. We take soils under 5.8 pH, add different lime rates, incubate them for 120 days, and measure changes in pH, buffer pH, and nutrient levels. That lets us dial in lime rates that actually move the needle on your soils.
Third, we’re running a two-part study on phosphorus and potassium.
Part one: We take a portion of the soil, add controlled amounts of P or K, incubate it for 120 days, and measure how much the soil test value increases. This tells us the soil’s buffer capacity—how many pounds it takes to raise the soil test number.
Part two: Using soil from the same bucket, we grow wheat in the greenhouse. The wheat is given every nutrient it needs except the one we’re testing—one set for phosphorus, one set for potassium.
We keep growing and clipping the wheat until the soil is mined out and the plant finally shows deficiency. The soil test level at that point becomes the true critical level for that soil.
Together, these tests show us how much nutrient it takes to build a soil test, and where crops actually start running short.
All three tests give us clearer, local data so you can make smarter fertility decisions and spend your dollars where they’ll actually pay.
1. Commercial Lab vs. Radicle Lab RepeatabilityHow we compare your current lab to the Radicle Lab by sending the same soil multiple times to each lab—showin...
