A leaf analysis shows what the plant took up; a soil analysis shows what is sitting in the root zone. They are used together. The time of sampling and which leaf was taken change the number.
Representative sampling
A few leaves do not stand in for the whole field.
Hidden hunger
Hidden hunger is a shortfall in the tissue without a color change. One season’s result does not prove it.
Using it to check the fertilizer program
The leaf result shows whether the program reached the plant, separately from the soil number.
