Quick question on soil samples. Is there any reason to wait until closer to “planting season” to pull my samples or am I okay to pull them now? I haven’t ever taken samples during winter and wanted to make sure there’s not something I’m missing. I’m hoping to take my samples mid February so I can start getting things in order for the spring planting.
As long as you can take samples at the depth you want, there should be no problem. Fertilizer recommendations are aimed at farmers. Most soil tests don't measure N at all. P&K recommendations come from a combination of what your soil has and what the crop you plan to plant requires. Most N recommendations only rely on the needs of the plant. If you get more comprehensive test, they will ask about previous legume crops and yield. This is to provide a rough estimate of banked N.
Keep in mind that fertilizer recommendations are for farmers who are generally planting monocultures and you want to maximize yield per acre and who harvest a crop removing a lot of nutrients from the soil. Fertilizer recommendations are as much an art as a science. If you don't specify the crop they generally won't provide a recommendation. If you take the results to 3 different agronomists and ask for a recommendation, you will get a somewhat different one from each.
I'm not suggesting that soil testing is not valuable. I personally avoid monocultures and always include legumes in a mix or rotation. I completely ignore N recommendations. The only added N my crops get are the small amount in the MAP I use to achieve my P requirements. Ball park levels are plenty good enough for food plots.
I would say the most important thing most folks get out of a soil test is a lime recommendation. Avoiding tillage that can consume OM and disturb the soil tilth will get you a long way in the right direction. A surface application of lime when needed will help plants utilize the nutrients much better.
I started out by following fertilizer recommendations (at least for P and K). Over time, with experience, I've learned to let the crops tell me if they are doing ok. My long term objective is to build healthy enough soil and use a smart mix of complementary deer crops with smart weed tolerance so that I don't need to fertilize at all. Right now, I'm still adding P&K every few years but levels are dipping less and less.
Just some food for though as you move through the process...
Thanks,
Jack