3-Way Soil Meter

The 3-Way Soil Meter is a pH meter, a soil moisture meter, and a light meter all rolled into one. It measures the moisture content of the soil, the amount of light available, and the pH level (acidity). It's perfect for coddling your more delicate specimens, evaluating newly tilled beds, or familiarizing new gardeners with their plants' environments. Use it with house or garden plants. It reads instantly and requires no batteries. The package lists light and moisture requirements for over 50 common houseplants.

Are you curious...?

A Danish chemist named Soren Peder Lauritz Sorensen came up with the p(H) measuring scale in 1909, and it was modified into today's common pH in 1924. The "H" stands for the hydrogen ions whose activity determines acidity. The "p" probably came from either "power" or "potential," but some schools teach it as meaning "percentage". Pure water is neutral with a pH of about 7.0. Lower numbers indicate acidity and higher numbers mean basic or alkaline.

Most indoor plants like slightly acidic soil with a pH between 6.5 and 7.0. A number much lower than that will make the leaves wither and drop off, while higher numbers (alkaline soil) makes leaves lose their color and stunts plant growth.