why do farmers need to know the ph level of their soil
Soil pH Soil pH is considered a master variable in soils as it affects many chemical processes. It specifically affects plant nutrient availability by controlling the chemical forms of the different nutrients and influencing the chemical reactions they undergo. The optimum pH range for most plants is between 5.5 and 7.5;[2] however, many plants have adapted to thrive at pHÂ values outside this range.
Red soil Red soil is a type of soil that develops in a warm, temperate, moist climate under deciduous or mixed forest, having thin organic and organic-mineral layers overlying a yellowish-brown leached layer resting on an illuvium red layer. Red soils are generally derived from crystalline rock. They are usually poor growing soils, low in nutrients and humus and difficult to cultivate because of its low water holding capacity. Red soils denote the third largest soil group of India covering an area of about 3.5 lakhs sq. km (10.6% of India's area) over the Peninsula from Tamil Nadu in the south to Bundelkhand in the north and Rajmahal hills in the east to Katchch in the west. They surround the red soils on their south, east and north.