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very rocky soil - very high P


Question
I'm growing alot of tomatoes approx 250 plants. The land is at a high elevation has a slight incline and the plot hasn't been cultivated in over 10 years. The soil is clay like and has a ridiculous amount of rocks. I did a soil test - pH was 7.0 - 7.5 Nitrogen was low. Potash was very low. Phosphorous was off the charts (very high). I purchased some peat moss and picked up loads of cow manure and with the soil made a mixture.  I've cleared the bigger stuff from the beds and the soil I used in the mixture was sifted.  My question is do I have a high P due to the massive amounts of rocks?

Answer
Hi Raquel, Possibly the rock or possibly the area has been blindly fertilized through the years with a "balanced" fertilizer such as 8-8-8 or 13-13-13 instead of being based on the results of a soil test.
Peat moss is usually acidic, but it may have had lime added to it at bagging to counteract the acidity.
Check your pH again 30 days or so after adding the peat moss.  If it's still over 7, consider adding a little iron sulfate or sulfur to bring it down to 6.5.  You may have to adjust it each year, but it will improve your crop.
I'd use low or no phosphorous fertilizer for a while.  Continue to customize your fertilizer program each year based on a soil test.
Jim

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