Sample Collection

PLANT TISSUE SAMPLING

Before you start, ask us to send you our FREE plant test kit that contains the submission form, sample bags, reply paid envelopes and sampling instructions. Call us on (08) 8332 0199, email us at info@apal.com.au, or fill in our soil test kit form!

Careful sampling is critical for reliable results

How to collect plant samples for the best test results

Be alert for any factor that can contaminate the sample. We are measuring elements in parts per million so even small amounts can significantly alter the results - e.g. perspiration from hands can increase sodium and chloride levels.

Sampling area

Select representative areas of the crop, pasture or orchard to sample. If you are assessing a problem area, it can be useful to send in an extra sample from adjacent productive plants for comparison.

Sample the following in separate sample bags:

Different crops or plant species.
Different varieties of crops or plants.
Crops or plants with different fertiliser or treatment histories.
Crops or plants at different stages of growth.

If these become mixed as one sample, the results and recommendations will not be relevant to any crop or area in particular.

In general sampling avoid anything unusual, but especially DO NOT sample:

leaves sprayed with fertiliser in the previous 2 weeks.
near the edge of a crop or the outside row of trees or vines.
headlands of cultivated paddocks where double fertilising may have occurred.
where the boom-spray may have overlapped in row crops.
areas that appear significantly different – take a separate sample from these.
leaves contaminated by soil.
from dung or urine patches.

Sampling procedure

Wear disposable plastic gloves when collecting plant samples (not latex or powder coated gloves).
Collect the plant material in clean paper bags.
If leaves are wet at sampling, collect in a clean plastic bag and then remove the excess moisture by air drying before transferring to the paper bags
Take the sample across the area in a grid or on a zig-zag sampling path and record for future re-sampling
Label the bags clearly with your name, sample name, plant /crop type and stage of growth.
Fill in the information sheet with your postal details and any information about the crop or plant tested that will help us with our recommendations.
Put the paper sample bag(s), information sheet and payment into the APAL reply paid envelope and post to us.
When using APAL or other plastic postal bags, it is a good idea to allow air movement into the bag by snipping off the corners or making some small holes in the sides

Please contact us if you have any questions about these procedures.

Sampling for different Plants/Crops

If you are testing as part of a regular nutrient monitoring program, sample at the times suggested below. Alternatively, take samples at anytime if you are trouble shooting crop or tree problems. To help diagnose an obvious problem, collect leaves showing the first signs of the distinctive symptoms as soon as they appear. If sampling outside the normal sampling time it is useful to take a second sample of similarly located healthy leaves from nearby unaffected plants/trees for comparison.

In general the youngest mature leaf (YML) is selected for testing in most species.

Orchards / Tree crops / Olives

Sample from December through to February.
Select the youngest mature leaf (blade and petiole) from current season’s non-fruiting extension growth at shoulder height.
Collect 4 leaves from each of 25 trees of a single cultivar.

Cereals

Sample at mid to late tillering and again at ear emergence – do not take the seed head if it has emerged.
Take the whole above ground portion of 20 to 30 plants.

Lupins, Beans, Canola

Sample 30 – 40 youngest mature leaves pre-flowering.

Vines

At flowering in October – December, collect 40 petioles from the leaves opposite the bunch in a single variety.
This sample will allow corrective actions in the current season’s crop.
At fruit ripening, collect 40 leaf blades only from opposite the basal cluster.
This sample can be used to diagnose problems late in the season and plan the following season’s nutrient program.

Vegetables

Take samples at early, mid and mature stages to understand plant requirements through the cropping cycle. The target levels of nutrients will change as the crop matures - eg more nitrogen is needed early but should then be allowed to fall towards harvest.
Select the youngest mature leaves of most crops and collect enough to make a representative sample. For brassicas and lettuce select the youngest mature wrapper leaf.

Lucerne

Sample at a vegetative growth stage and collect the top 150mm of 20-30 plant tops.

Pasture

Take a general sample of the top portions of the plants as an animal would graze. Avoid taking roots and soil – scissors may be needed.

Soil, plant and animal nutrition

Australian Perry Agricultural Laboratory

Information

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