Texas Plant & Soil Lab, Inc of Edinburg in the lower Rio Grande Valley was established in 1938 by Dr. George Schulz when he was enticed from Florida to start a commercial soil testing lab mainly for citrus growers in McAllen, TX. Dr. s Schulz' built an industry leading facility from scratch is an outstanding example of using initiative to help build the farming industry of our GREAT NATION. He emigrated from Germany in 1933 through Ellis Island. Jobs were hard to find even with a Ph.D. in Chemistry. The only job he could find was milking cows. He then found a job in Wisconsin testing milk and then went to Florida working with citrus.

This private Texas Agricultural Lab continues to lead in the fields of soil fertility and plant nutrition. Esper K. Chandler (now deceased), a Certified Professional Agronomist and Soil Scientist, acquired the Lab in 1981 with his partner Dr. Albin D. Lengyel (now deceased) of Phoenix, AZ, a teenage emigrant from Hungary to escape Hitler. Joining the U.S. Navy, Al used the GI Bill to aid his education with degrees in agronomy, physiology and biochemistry. Al was a pioneer in the practical application of plant analysis, particularly petiole (sap) testing. Al had little patience with the Vietnam War protesters who did not appreciate the freedom and opportunity of his adopted country. K. Chandler with boyhood farm experience from tractor driver, thru farm manager and owner, L.S.U. Experiment Station, Fertilizer Industry salesman, Agronomist, research & development and Executive with three (3) successive major fertilizer industry leaders, is now an Independent Agricultural Consultant in Conventional, Sustainable, and Natural/Organic methods.

By "Asking the plants" what they need for maximum economic production with plant analysis, TPSL, with the aid of many soil fertility experts, developed soil-testing procedures that uniquely imitate plant/soil interactions. Using University research procedures for extracting soil nutrients with Carbon Dioxide that mimic the plant roots natural process, their lab test values were calibrated by plant analysis for rating soil nutrient availability. Citrus & Sugar Cane were the first crops to be crop-logged. Vegetables, fruits, nuts, field crops, pastures, lawns, gardens, athletic turf, etc. followed. Crop Logging (series of testing) is especially effective with irrigation.

K. Chandler of TPSL was cited as a leader in soil fertility and plant nutrition by ACRES U.S.A., an internationally acclaimed agricultural publication. They featured the Lab as a cutting - edge leader in the field of soil fertility and plant nutrition. TPSL's development of standards for using plant sap (blood) tests calibrated to soil tests is leading the field of aiding growers to improve their yields, quality and profits. Their Crop-Logging Plant Analysis Programs increase yields, quality, profits, and also IMPROVE WATER USE EFFICIENCY.