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Trouble- Shooting
1. Label EVERYTHING (before you go outside)neatly and correctly, and bring extra bags and sharpies just in case. Also, make sure you know your labeling system before you go outside to collect samples, which was a problem we ran into. For example, keep the IV(independent variable) and C(control) bags labeled so its easy to compare.
2.In areas with water, make sure to wear a lot of BUGSPRAY, pants and a long-sleeved shirt to protect against mosquitoes!
3. Watch out for poison ivy while outside!
4. It's suggested to bring a mallet out while gathering soil samples if you are having trouble getting the soil core tester into the ground.
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5. Wash your soil core testers in a stream or another source of water like washing it down with a water bottle after collecting each sample. That way they don't get contaminated by mixing the soil samples together, changing the results.
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6. While doing the chemical tests, make sure to have gloves, goggles, and close-toed shoes. Be careful handling test tubes during these tests.
7. After serial dilutions be sure to wash down your work area with 70% isopropyl alcohol after each day to keep things sterile.
8. Remember to clean each container and test tube after use for the next day to avoid contamination which will effect the results.
For the serial dilutions, using the same pipette used in the last soil sample will contaminate the next soil samples. This can be prevented by labeling the transfer pipettes. Also change the micropipette tips too after each use.
For all the tests, using the same transfer pipettes without cleaning them after use will cause contamination. To avoid this, you can keep a beaker full of water to wash them out after using them.
For the pH testing, if the solution is still unclear, you can use the microcentrofuge to get it more clear.
8. We used the LaMotte Combination Soil Outfit Model STH-14 Code 5010-01 while testing for sulfur, pH, aluminum, and humus. The humus test was not necessary though; it gave no results.
9. There are a variety of growth media, but we used the 3M Petrifilm™ Yeast and Mold Count Plate.
10. We had an anomaly with the data between pH and sulfur (see sample data), so we decided to look at the plant density in our research sites by using densitometers to see if the plants might be the cause of the unexpectedly low sulfur. This might me the case for you too so here is how to build a plant densitometer.
11. For the serial dilutions, to make1 cc soil scoop click here.