Recently I submitted a soil sample to the Oklahoma State University soil lab. I took about 24 sample cores from my yard and mixed them together. Boy was I surprised when i received my results. My soil pH is 6.1 (acidic) and needs about 46 lbs. Per 1000 square feet of lime to bring my soil up to neutral of 6.5. My phosphorous and potassium readings are extremely high (normal here), so I only need a straight nitrogen fertilizer. Contact your local extension office. Fall is a great time to do this.Stop guessing on your soils fertility needs. They can also tell you the soil type.
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Agree! I just did this as well in NC - my only cost was shipping my samples up to Raleigh.
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Love this idea- another way to tune that flex schedule to work perfectly for your individual situation. How did you guys go about finding where to send your samples in?
@Linn, would you mind sharing the weblink to your soil testing lab in Raleigh, since I happen to live there? What was sample size and # you have submitted? The NCSU site for soil testing gives me a 404 error 
Thanks in advance!
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Logan Labs comes highly recommended on the lawn care message boards.
I got my test done through the local college and it wasn’t as detailed as the Logan tests I’ve seen.
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Damn, that is a ton of lime!
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@hgugger, I used NCSU – some of their links sometimes give 404 errors, but you can normally get there by going in a different way. Try this link to see if it can get you started http://www.ncagr.gov/agronomi/sthome.htm. I followed their instructions (i did do my front yard and my back yard as separate samples). It was pretty simple — I took 10 or so core samples, mixed it all up,then filled up the box to the line they had on it. The analysis was free and took about two weeks – you get the report online. Cost me $9 to send the samples from Charlotte to Raleigh because of the weight! If I lived in Raleigh, I’d just drive it over! You probably will also need to drive over and pick up the sample boxes from them. (The web site says “Pick them up at your county Cooperative Extension office or at the Agronomic Division office in Raleigh.”). If you have any problems, PM me.
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@linn and @robertokc, I find it very interesting that the recommendations at a pH of 6.1 are so dramatically different: Linn gets a 0 lbs/1000 sqft (per NCSU), and robertokc at a hefty 46 lbs! Also, Linn’s report states 5.8-6.5 as the optimal range for non centiped lawn. Thanks so much for sharing your report here @Linn, this is really very helpful. And the link worked just fine, go figure.
Not really. One does this over a 2 year period. My yard is 8,000 square feet.