Soil Testing.
Stop guessing what the lawn needs.
If you have tried everything and the lawn still looks rough, it is the soil. One lab test says what is missing, what the pH is, and whether the grass can even use what you put on it.
Pick what you need. We look at the property and text you a number, usually the same day.
Lawn Soil Testing
Lawn soil testing in Bernardsville and the Somerset Hills
Every feeding program starts with a question: what is the soil actually short of? A test answers it for a few dollars. Guessing costs a season.
Grass can only take up nutrients inside a narrow pH range, roughly 6.0 to 7.0. Most soil in this part of Somerset and Morris County runs acidic, often well below 6.0, especially under oaks and pines. In acidic soil the fertilizer you apply gets chemically locked up before the roots can reach it. You can feed a lawn like that four times a year and watch nothing happen. The fix is not more fertilizer. It is lime to bring the pH up, and the only way to know how much is a test.
What the soil test includes
- Samples pulled from several spots across the lawn, mixed the way the lab wants
- Lab analysis of pH, phosphorus, potassium, calcium, magnesium and organic matter
- Plain English results, we walk you through what it means
- Lime and feeding plan built from the numbers, not a generic schedule
What the results change
The test tells us three things. The pH, which decides whether lime goes down and how much. The phosphorus and potassium levels, which decide the fertilizer blend. And the organic matter, which tells us how well the soil holds water and food. We read the results with you and the feeding program is built off them, not off a generic schedule.
Why New Jersey requires it for phosphorus
Under the state fertilizer law, turf fertilizer sold in New Jersey contains zero phosphorus unless a soil test shows the lawn needs it. The rule exists because runoff phosphorus feeds algae in the lakes and reservoirs, and most established lawns do not need it anyway. So if anyone is putting phosphorus on your lawn without a test in hand, they are guessing and they are outside the law. A test is the only way to do it right.
When to test
Any time the ground is not frozen. Fall is ideal because lime takes months to work and a fall application is ready by spring. If you are planning fall seeding, test first. New seed in acidic soil is money on the ground.
A soil test is a small line on any lawn quote, and free when we do aeration and seeding. See all the lawn care programs to see which fits.
Find out what the lawn is actually missing.
One test, one plan, no more guessing. We pull the samples on the first visit.
How it works.
Three steps. No contract before anyone has seen the property.
Samples pulled
We take cores from across the lawn on the first visit.
Lab results back
Usually inside two weeks. pH, nutrients and organic matter.
The plan gets built
Lime if needed, then a feeding blend that matches your soil.
More services
Everything else on the property.
One quote covers all of it. Pick what you need and we sort it out.
Pest control plan, $80 a month
House perimeter every quarter, ticks and mosquitoes all season, one licensed tech. Month to month, no contract.
See the planLawn care
Aeration and seeding before October 5, the winterizer feeding before December 1, weed control while the kill holds. Sold a la carte.
Lawn servicesTick and mosquito control
Barrier spray on the perimeter and shade, April through October, so the backyard is usable all summer.
DetailsMice and rodent control
Mice move in when it gets cold. Found, sealed out and dealt with. Plan members get it at a member rate.
DetailsPlant and shrub care
Six visits a year for the hedges, shrubs and ornamentals. Feeding, bugs, disease and a proper trim at the right month.
DetailsLandscaping
Fall cleanups and leaf removal, mulch and edging, hedge trimming, weekly mowing, patios, walkways and retaining walls.
DetailsWhere we work.
Based in Bernardsville. The Somerset Hills and the Morris County towns around it, about 20 minutes out. Close by and not on the list? Ask.
Quick answers.
How much does a soil test cost?
Free when we do aeration and seeding. On its own it is a small line on the quote, and we tell you the number before pulling a sample.
Can I just buy a test kit?
Home kits read pH roughly and nothing else. A lab gives you nutrient levels and a lime recommendation you can act on.
How often should the soil be tested?
Every two to three years for an established lawn, or before any big seeding job.
Why is my soil acidic?
Rainfall, decades of oak and pine leaf litter, and the underlying rock in this part of New Jersey. It is normal here and it is fixable with lime.
Ready for a number?
Call or text, or start the quote form. We look at the property and reply the same day, most days.
(908) 210-3835