First I pull all the samples.

Basic Soil test only $8.80 no recommendations Olsen chemistry not Mehlich III. Get N, P, K, Mg, Ca, pH, OM, computed CEC. Bold I use and crossed out not used.

$18 for tissue analysis, roughly everything but Mo & Cl. Much of the time I pay the extra $18 for Mo. No recommendations or ratios asked for. I have my spread sheet build ratios and I look at the levels, consider the ratios and use a modified DRIS analysis.

Each field is divided in thirds and sampled separately. I normally sample 3 alfalfa fields each May and 2 bermudagrass fields each June. The sub samples are looked at for consistency, anything odd is questioned. The spread sheet averages the values and the average for that field is used in the fertility program.

Separately I am building a file of measured CEC values. I never send in less than 10 of these. I will continue this until I have a comfortable value for each field.

The alfalfa fields are sampled the last season in production,  to determine fertility needs for the next alfalfa stand. Alfalfa is sampled the first year back in production to check the adequacy of the fertility for the life of that stand. Some alfalfa fields are resampled again the second year, or later, if I am curious.

The payoff has been a doubling of tons per acre bermudagrass production and a third improved alfalfa production, along with better summer drought survival.

At one time or another I have applied or plowed in copper, Molybdenum, zinc, Manganese. plus K Mag and or MOP, phosphate on the alfalfa. For the bermudagrass meadows lots of nitrogen and a fair amount of phosphate is deep banded each winter, potash is applied when I am in the mood & the testing suggest it.  

The challenge is with the 8 pH and CEC ranging between 40 and 60 meq/100g. That plus our climate.

Then every field every cutting has hay samples pulled for NIR feed value.