Composts can be used as a source of nutrition and/or soil amendment. More frequently composts are blended with conventional fertiliser sources to improve production. The large amount of variation that can occur in the manufacturing process means that it is very important to test your compost so you understand its composition and can budget the nutrition for yield outcomes. This is a common mistake.
Apal can analyse your compost samples for a full range of nutrition.
Apal is not able to test raw or un-composted manure or untreated effluent. We can only accept dry or composted materials. If in doubt, give us a call before sending in samples.
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Lime, Dolomite and Gypsum are analysed for Calcium, Magnesium and Sulfur content. For Gypsum, the % purity is then derived from the sulfur analysis. Lime and Dolomite also have a sieve analysis, so the report can include both Total Neutralising Value (TNV) and Effective Neutralising Value (ENV).
The Apal report includes comments comparing the sample to the desired mineral content and test parameters for the various industry accepted grades for soil amendments.
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Grain testing can be utilised to determine the nutritional value of grain produced, which can also be used to estimate nutrient removals for that crop. The mineral content of grain can also be determined to analyse the supply of minerals to animals through their diet. This will be based on the animals requirements and mineral concentration in the grain.
Testing your feed will help you make informed decisions on:
- The ability of the feed to meet the nutritional requirements of the livestock
- Calculating feed rations
- Budgeting for feed gaps
Apal can arrange testing through a specialist sub-contractor, using either Near Infrared (NIR) technology or classical wet chemical analysis, for hay, silage, pasture and grain permitting you to accurately assess the quality of your feed before you feed it, buy it or sell it.
Apal utilises an Adelaide based company Creation Innovation and Forestry (CIAAF) in order to deliver a low cost science based microbial activity test to Australian farmers.
Increased interest in soil microbiology in recent years has been hampered on the ground by the lack of affordable and reliable microbial testing services. However this situation has now be changed with the launch of the CIAAF Microbial Activity Test available exclusively through Apal.
The CIAAF Microbial Activity Test is ideal for those who want a broad, single indicator of microbial activity in their soil. Carbon dioxide evolved from a sample over a given time is measured by digital chromatograph to calculate the amount of microbial activity, measured as microbial respiration. The greater the amount of CO2 evolved over a given period, the higher the amount of microbial activity, and vice versa. There is a very good correlation between CO2 evolution from soils and other materials, such as compost, etc., and microbial activity as measured by other, previously standard, but now outdated methods.
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Analysis includes: Antimony, Arsenic, Barium, Beryllium, Boron, Cadmium, Cobalt, Chromium, Copper, Manganese, Nickel, Molybdenum, Lead, Selenium, Tin, Vanadium, Zinc and Mercury (needs to be specified).
These metals are generally accepted as potential contaminants of soil and produce that can impact human and animal health if present in excess quantities.
The test sample is analysed for specific pesticides in either the Organo-Chlorine (OC) or Organo-Phosphate (OP) categories. These include:
Similar to heavy metals, these pesticides are generally accepted as potential contaminants of soil and produce that can impact human and animal health if present in excess quantities.