The wording in the source

Timing

• Soil samples shall be collected and analyzed at a frequency that meets NRCS technical standards and guidelines, and as often as is necessary to ensure protection of groundwater and surface water quality.

  Rule 335-6-7-.26(5)(b)

Method

• shall be sampled according to accepted standard soil sampling procedures.

  Rule 335-6-7-.26(5)

Depth

• The surface soils (0-3 inches in sod crops and depth of plow layer in cultivated crops) of each field where waste/wastewater has been or will be land applied shall be sampled according to accepted standard soil sampling procedures.

  Rule 335-6-7-.26(5)

Who it applies to

• of each field where waste/wastewater has been or will be land applied

  Rule 335-6-7-.26(5)

• the requirements of this Chapter are applicable to all new and existing AFOs in the State.

  Rule 335-6-7-.03(2)

Laboratory and analysis

• Soil pH and lime requirement for the soil and crop to be grown.

  Rule 335-6-7-.26(5)(b)1

• Extractable phosphorus.

  Rule 335-6-7-.26(5)(b)2

• Soil Test Methods for the Southern Region of the United States, 1983, Southern Cooperative Service Bulletin, 289, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia

  Rule 335-6-7-.26(5)(a)

• Other analytical methodology(s) as may be approved by the Director or his designee.

  Rule 335-6-7-.26(5)(a)3

• Reference Soil and Media Diagnostic Procedures for the Southern Region of the United States, 1992, S.J. Donahue (ed.), Southern Cooperative Service Bulletin 374

  Rule 335-6-7-.26(5)(a)1

• Soil Test Fertilizer Recommendations For Alabama Crops, 1994, J.F. Adams, C.C. Mitchell, and H.H. Bryant, Agronomy And Soils Department Series No. 178 (as amended), Auburn University

  Rule 335-6-7-.26(5)(a)2

• Extractable zinc, copper, arsenic, and other selected metals, if it is determined by the QCP that it is probable that one or more metals … present in sufficiently high concentrations in the land applied waste or wastewater, or naturally present in the soil

  Rule 335-6-7-.26(5)(b)3

The wording in the source

Timing

• Ideally, grid sampling should be conducted every 4 to 5 years in each field, while zone sampling should be used in between to be more effective with both nutrient applications and sampling costs.

  ANR-3181, Summary

Area per sample

• The size of sampling grids can range between 1 and 5 acres, but a smaller grid size of 2.5 acres or less is recommended to accurately capture variability in soil pH and nutrient levels within fields. Larger grid sizes (up to 5 acres) are often used in relatively uniform fields to reduce labor and sampling costs.

  ANR-3181, Grid Sampling

• sampling grids should be 2.5 acres or less for grid sampling, and management zones should be 10 acres or less for zone sampling.

  ANR-3181, Summary

Method

• grid sampling should be used in all newly cropped fields; in fields that have been brought back into production after a few years; in fields with past management issues; or in any field where a baseline of nutrient variability needs to be established.

  ANR-3181, Choice of Precision Soil Sampling Strategy

• point sampling is usually the preferred method, where eight to ten soil cores are collected in a circular pattern (in a radius of 30 to 50 feet depending on grid size) around the centroid point within a grid.

  ANR-3181, Grid Sampling

• an S pattern (or Z pattern) is more common when soil samples are collected using an automated soil sampler mounted on a utility terrain vehicle (UTV).

  ANR-3181, Grid Sampling

• one of the most common techniques is to follow a zigzag travel pattern through the zone, randomly collecting soil cores at regular intervals

  ANR-3181, Zone Sampling

Cores

• an adequate number of soil cores (eight to twelve) should be collected within each grid or zone to make a composite sample.

  ANR-3181, Summary

• at least ten to fifteen cores should be collected for zones of 10 acres or less and the number of soil cores should be increased accordingly for zones larger than 10 acres.

  ANR-3181, Zone Sampling