Why gardeners add lime to soil

Why do gardeners add lime to soil. Related Articles. Why Do Kettles Whistle December 31, Leave a Reply Cancel reply Your email address will not be published. Find Your Answer. Why do kids stutter June 20, Why do people believe in Bigfoot June 22, Why do people abuse children June 14, Why do plants need sunlight March 07, Above pH 7. See our page on soil pH testing for more detail. It is especially worth checking soil pH and making any adjustments before designing or planting a new garden, making vegetable plots, planting fruit or when growth is disappointing.

Testing can be done at any time, but if carried out within three months after adding lime, fertiliser or organic matter, the test may give misleading results.

If your soil pH test comes back at 7. If the pH is above 6. The active ingredient is calcium carbonate. Ground limestone is easy to spread, widely offered in garden centres, and is the recommended liming material for gardeners. Calcified seaweed and ground chalk are other forms of calcium carbonate offered to gardeners.

Hydrated lime calcium hydroxide , sold for use by builders, can also be used. It is a fine powder, quick acting, but can irritate skin and eyes if not handled carefully. Therefore, if you use hydrated lime, you will need much less than products containing calcium carbonate.

Liming materials are very finely ground so that they work quickly. Avoid any products with lumps, as they will take years to have any effect. When applying more than 0. When applying less than 0. The clay in soils resists changes in pH called buffering capacity so that much more lime is needed to change the pH in soils with high clay content than in soils with little clay, such as coarse sandy soil.

See our page on soil types for more information on assessing your garden soil type. The recommendations below are for the finely ground garden lime calcium carbonate sold in garden centres in kilograms kg per square metre or ounces per square yard. This is considered the best all-round pH for the majority of garden plants.

Wear gloves and consider safety goggles if adversely affected. Some plant diseases, such as clubroot of brassicas, are associated with insufficient lime levels in the soil.

If you get your soil tested at the end of the winter, add lime immediately as recommended by the test results. Mix it into the soil well before your frost-free date indicates you can plant your vegetables or flowers. Gardens found in acidic soil areas benefit from annual or bi-annual applications of garden lime. Raised bed gardens may get away with fewer applications. A soil test, however, is the best way to tell whether or not it is time to apply garden lime. Soil generally falls into three categories:.

Another way to test your soil is to scoop up about a tablespoon of garden soil into the palm of your hand. Add a few ounces of water and roll the soil to form a ball. The less water you need to form a ball, the higher the clay content. The following information will help you raise your garden soil pH to 6. There are many types of lime available at the store, but the best ones to use for your vegetable or flower gardens are pelletized lime and powdered lime:. Lime is usually sold in large bags or sacks.

It should be kept dry until you are ready for lime application, so store it in a garage or shed. Water can penetrate the sack and dissolve the lime, making it unusable. Most home gardeners use a lime or drop spreader to spread powdered lime on lawns and gardens. A lime spreader is a machine you walk behind and push. It has a hopper in the front that you fill with powdered lime.

A spreader then sprays out the powder in even amounts as you push the machine forward. To apply lime to lawns, fill the lime spreader with the appropriate amount of lime. Lime for garden soil can also be scattered using a spreader. Mix it into the soil at a depth of about four to six inches. Lime needs water to mix into the soil and become available to plants. Think of lime like vitamins for the soil. Adding lime to the soil is like a vitamin.

Lime can be very beneficial for lawns. Lawns that have yellow patches, brown patches, weedy areas or an abundance of moss may benefit from an even application of lime. Weeds or mossy patches can both be signs that the pH of specific areas on the lawn differ from the overall pH of the lawn. Moss, for example, grows in acidic conditions — which can be improved by the addition of lime. Adding lime to your lawn also does more than just raising the soil pH.

Lime also adds calcium, which in turn helps grass absorb trace elements such as zinc, copper and others. An even spread of lime can correct many deficiencies and adjust the pH of the lawn over the growing season so the problems disappear. Apply lime to lawns in the fall. Rain and cool temperatures help lime move into the soil. Depending on your soil, you may need to add lime throughout the vegetable garden.

Remember that adding lime raises the pH level of the soil. Pay particular attention to beds where the following vegetables and fruits will be grown to ensure proper plant nutrients:. This includes blueberries as well as ornamental shrubs such as azaleas, rhododendrons and hollies.

Remember that the roots extend out under the soil in an umbrella-like shape under the ground. The drip line, or the imaginary line around the shrub where the leaves extend in a circle, is the line underground where the roots grow.

They also need the soil pH to be within an acceptable range for their species so they can absorb these minerals and other elements from the soil for growth and development.

Plants that suffer from a nutrient deficiency may benefit from lime added to the soil.