Soil sample being tested in a rural field

01 — Soil testing

Know the ground before you commit to it.

Whether you are planning a revegetation program, buying a block, correcting a production problem or reporting on a site, the soil will decide what is realistic. We build the suite around that.

What we can run

Three groups, scoped to the question.

Most jobs need one or two of these, not all three. Scroll through, then tell us which decision the numbers have to support.

Fertility and nutrient status

The standard agronomic picture — what the soil is holding and what a plant can actually get to.

This is the suite most restoration and production questions start with. It tells you where you sit before you spend money on amendment, and it gives you a baseline to measure the next round against.

pH1:5 water and CaCl₂
Electrical conductivity1:5, dS/m
Organic carbonWalkley–Black
Total nitrogen%
Available phosphorusColwell and Bray
Exchangeable cationsCa, Mg, K, Na
Cation exchange capacitycmol(+)/kg
Exchangeable sodium percentageESP, %
SulfurKCl-40
Trace elementsCu, Zn, Mn, Fe, B

Typically used forRevegetation planning, pasture and crop nutrition, amendment rates, baseline monitoring.

Texture and physical condition

How the soil holds together, holds water and lets roots through.

Chemistry explains a lot, but not why a planting failed in a season with adequate rain. Structure, dispersion and water behaviour usually do. These tests matter most on disturbed ground, made ground and sites with a history of compaction.

Rich brown soil in close up, showing mineral particles and structure

Particle size analysissand / silt / clay
Field texturegrade and class
Bulk densityg/cm³
Aggregate stabilityEmerson class
Dispersionslaking and dispersion index
Water holding capacityfield capacity, wilting point
Gravel content% >2 mm

Typically used forSite preparation, ripping and amelioration decisions, earthworks sign-off, irrigation design.

Contaminants and site constraints

Scoped from the site history and the proposed use, not from a catalogue.

Contaminant work is only useful when the scope is tied to what was on the site and what is going there next. Send us the history — former land use, fill, aerial photography, anything you already have — and we will work through what needs to be on the list and what does not.

Heavy metalsAs, Cd, Cr, Cu, Pb, Hg, Ni, Zn
Total recoverable hydrocarbonsTRH, C6–C40
BTEXbenzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, xylenes
Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbonsPAH
Salinity and sodicityEC, ESP
Acid sulfate soil screeningpH F and pH FOX

Typically used forDue diligence, validation of imported fill, land use change, reporting to a consultant or council.

Asbestos identification and other work requiring specific accreditation is referred to an accredited laboratory. We will tell you when that applies rather than work around it.

Before you collect

Getting a sample worth testing

Most of the error in a soil result happens before the sample reaches us. A few habits remove nearly all of it.

Sample by zone, not by paddock

Split the site by soil type, slope position, vegetation and management history. A single averaged sample across three different soils describes none of them.

Take enough cores

Fifteen to twenty cores bulked and mixed per zone. One or two holes will not survive the variation in a real paddock.

Keep the depth consistent

0–10 cm for surface fertility and revegetation work, 0–30 cm where root zone or carbon is the question. Record it — a result without a depth is hard to use.

Avoid the obvious outliers

Stay clear of fence lines, gateways, stock camps, tracks, burn piles and old fertiliser dumps unless those are deliberately what you are sampling.

Air dry, do not oven dry

Spread the sample and let it dry out of direct sun. Heat changes nitrogen and some trace element results.

Label so it is still clear in six months

Site, zone, depth, date and who took it. Include a sketch or GPS points where you can.

0 cm

Soil enquiry

Send us the site history and the question.

Old reports, aerial photography, a sketch of the zones — anything you already have narrows the scope and usually lowers the cost.

Start an enquiry info@surelabs.com.au

Core depth0–0 cm

Soil testing

Know the ground before you commit to it.

Whether you are planning a revegetation program, buying a block, correcting a production problem or reporting on a site, the soil will decide what is realistic. We build the suite around that.

What we can run

Three groups. Tap for the full list.

Before you collect

Getting a sample worth testing

Most of the error in a soil result happens before the sample reaches us. A few habits remove nearly all of it.

Sample by zone, not by paddock

Split the site by soil type, slope position, vegetation and management history. A single averaged sample across three different soils describes none of them.

Take enough cores

Fifteen to twenty cores bulked and mixed per zone. One or two holes will not survive the variation in a real paddock.

Keep the depth consistent

0–10 cm for surface fertility and revegetation work, 0–30 cm where root zone or carbon is the question. Record it — a result without a depth is hard to use.

Avoid the obvious outliers

Stay clear of fence lines, gateways, stock camps, tracks, burn piles and old fertiliser dumps unless those are deliberately what you are sampling.

Air dry, do not oven dry

Spread the sample and let it dry out of direct sun. Heat changes nitrogen and some trace element results.

Label so it is still clear in six months

Site, zone, depth, date and who took it. Include a sketch or GPS points where you can.

Swipe →

Water sample tubes held up against a green riverside

Irrigating the site? Test the water too.

Sodium, chloride and bicarbonate change what a soil result means.

Open

Analysing soil composition on fertile agricultural land

Start here

Send us the site history.

Old reports, aerial photography, a sketch of the zones — anything you have narrows the scope.

Start an enquiry