Montgomery County’s clay-rich soil is known for causing problems for farmers and gardeners alike.
The county's urban areas are also prone to testing higher in metals.
That's according to Leeoria Willis, the agricultural natural resource extension educator and master gardener volunteer coordinator for Montgomery County.
"I think it's important just to know what you're dealing with. Plant diagnostics can be extremely difficult," Willis said. "So if you have a soil test on file, we can kind of go through the steps a little faster. We offer the soil testing here at the [OSU Extension] office and then we keep it on file so people can call and ask questions. Or, if they start to have problems with their other plants, we're able to take a look at that."
Willis grew up on a pig farm in Northeast Ohio and she said that is where her interest in soil health developed.
"We also grew some garlic and had a garden of our own. So we were able to see what directly affected our soil when I was a kid versus what's now directly affecting it with the chances of heavy metal contamination downtown, things like that where we're truly just wanting to make sure that everyone's landscape gardens are safe," she said.
Since Ohio soil is almost never ideal, Willis said she wants to offer tips to gardeners and landscapers in the county on how to problem solve and get the most out of your garden.
"I'm not gonna go into what they taught me in my Soils 301 class in college, but just the basics of what we can do as good environmental stewards, as well as homeowners and landowners to benefit our soil," she said.
Willis focuses her education on soil testing, its importance, organic versus inorganic treatment and working hands-on with soil samples.
For even more information about gardening and soil health, find a wide range of articles from the OSU Extension at extension.osu.edu.
Willis said those looking to improve their soil health can go through OSU Extension's online registration for soil testing at montgomery.osu.edu. Tests are $20 for farmland and $25 for backyard landscapers or gardeners.
"We can come out and take the sample for you within that charge, or you can collect it yourself and bring it in. We ship those out to — Spectrum Analytics in Washington courthouse. So we send it out there, then they send us our results and I'm able to work one-on-one with those clients."
It’s important for any gardener to understand soil health if they hope to produce a fruitful yield, Willis said.
“If we don't know our values and we overfeed our lawn, that can cause an issue," she said. "Or if we know our value and we underfeed, that can also cause a secondary issue.”
Gardeners and landscapers can learn more at the upcoming Five Rivers MetroParks Small Farm and Food Fest on Aug. 2, which runs from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Carriage Hill MetroPark.
"This will be probably more geared towards the backyard gardener, backyard landscaper," Willis said.
She will speak on soil amendment alongside seven other presenters at the fest.
"I think the collaboration and just the vast education opportunities that they bring, you don't really see the topics that [they're] offering, speaker wise, all in one location, which is nice," she said.
If you miss the festival, Willis presents at other locations around the region.
"The Dayton Metro Library System is where you'll see a lot of extensions presentations," she said. "All of those are typically free of charge. So we have topics ranging from gardening to native plants and we have hit every library through Dayton Metro library systems as well as some private libraries."
In addition to public lectures, Willis said she and her fellow extension educators can be booked for private presentations.
"I've talked to garden clubs, senior centers, some church gardening groups," she said. "But if there's ever a need for a presentation, there's usually just a small speaking fee and we can get that scheduled on the calendar and basically teach anywhere."
