Chemical Properties of Soils Make up for Lab Quiz 2 Please answer the following questions. pH What is ideal pH for general plant material in mineral soils? If I have a pH of 8.5 what cation is most predominant? If I have a pH of 7-8.5 what cation(s) are most predominant? If I have a pH of 7- 8.5 what nutrients may be deficient? If you had a soil with a pH of 8.2 what could you add to bring it to the ideal range? If you had a soil with a pH of 5.5 what could you add to bring it to the ideal range? EC How would you determine if your soil is sodic? What does that mean? What would you do if your client has a sodic soil?What would you do if your soil is saline? At what EC does salinity become a problem? CEC Please indicate whether these soils would have a high, medium, or low CEC. Clay loam with 5% organic matter __________ Loamy sand ____________ Coarse sand with 25% humus _________Fine sand with no OM ________ Carbonates How would you test a soil to see if you have high amounts of Calcium carbonate and magnesium carbonate in the topsoil? What would a positive result do as far as nutrient availability or toxicity? What could you add to alleviate any problems with this soil?