Providing the proper nutrition program for your plants is important for controlling growth. Sampling the root medium or plant tissue is a simple check of the nutritional status of the crop and can provide clues about a crop's performance before deficiency or toxicity symptoms appear. Plant leaf-tissue analysis is especially useful when one needs to determine micronutrient levels in the plant.
High alkalinity can significantly increase the root medium pH over time.
The pH of your root medium dramatically influences the availability of various nutrients to your plants. In addition, growers may want an analysis of their fertilizer solution to double check their mixing procedures or to check the calibration of their injectors. The purpose of this leaflet is to provide instructions to growers for taking representative samples for laboratory analysis. A selected list of labs specializing in greenhouse root medium, irrigation water, fertilizer solution, and plant tissue samples is provided in Table 1. Greenhouse Root Medium Conducting routine medium analysis is essential in determining the nutrient status of your crop.