What is the pH associated with West Michigan?
Answers
The native pH of most Michigan soils is in the range of 5.5 to 7.7, appropriate for good nutrition for most plants.
Understanding the difference between alkalinity and pH and how alkaline water can affect plants is important in determining what to do to remedy possible nutritional problems.
When thinking about water quality, alkalinity is much more important than pH. pH tells you whether the water is acidic, neutral or basic, but not the buffering capacity of the water. Buffering capacity is the ability of water (or compound) to resist a change in pH. Alkalinity tells you the buffering capacity in the basic pH range of the water.
You can have a high (or low) pH water with very little buffering capacity, meaning you can easily and quickly change the pH of the water; this also means the water is unlikely to change the pH of soils or potting mixes. You can also have water with a pH above 7 with a high alkalinity, meaning it will be difficult to change the pH of the water. This also means the water, if the alkalinity is high enough or a lot of water is applied, can increase the pH of soils or potting mixes.