Soil Testing

State of Missouri – Soil Samples, Child’s School Project: High of 341 ppm Lead

These are soil samples sent to me by a 9 year old boy for his school report. He decided he wanted to test soil near him (specifically around his school) for Lead for a science project. For context (for a better understanding of what the Lead levels mean) please read this post. Click here to…

Soil from Topanga / Calabasas, CA (XRF test results, March 2019).

Note: IF you are sending me soil samples to test, please follow the instructions on the link below very carefully and please send no more than one teaspoon to one tablespoon of soil per sample. When larger amounts of soil are sent, especially when surface soil is intermingled with soil under the surface, the readings are…

Soil from Southern California (XRF Test Results – February 2019).

Someone sent me some soil to test, and I thought I would share the results here with all of you! Although most of the items sent in by folks for me to test are household consumer goods, I often get soil samples to test for families with concerns about toxicants in their yard (or garden,…

Study: Remediating Soil Lead with Fish Bones, January 2012

“Fish bones are made of the phosphate mineral apatite, which readily combines with lead to form pyromorphite, a stable crystalline mineral that can’t be absorbed by the human digestive system.1,2 Now researchers are using fish bones and other phosphate-rich amendments to remediate lead in urban soils. “We have seen reduction in bioaccessibility in some lab…

You tested my soil, what do the results mean? How do I interpret the data? Is my soil safe?

Click here to read my post about soil testing. You may hear “experts” say that all soil has some amount of lead in it today, in the post-industrial revolution modern era. This is simply not true. I have personally tested countless soil samples from around the country that were completely negative (non-detect / ND) for lead,…

Soil Testing Using an XRF: Send Lead Safe Mama soil samples to have them tested for Lead.

Originally posted: May 25, 2017 Updated: January 1, 2024 PLEASE NOTE: We currently have a 6 to 8 week turn around for reporting soil sample test results (for soil samples sent in by readers) in most cases. We may have urgent testing available (for a higher fee, see below) but this is not always the…

Read this post to learn what I have done at my home to make sure my urban yard and garden are Lead-safe!

Posted here: February 26, 2017 Updated: April 26, 2020 I took this picture of our back yard years ago and realized that every element in the photos had a “Lead story” – so I thought it would be fun to annotate it and share it with you all, in case it could help you come up with some new ideas…