Angus74

I planted some small plots back in the timber this year, and had no way to get a lime truck near them. I had done soil samples a while back on a couple of them, and it suggested 6TONS PER ACRE!!! In a couple of these plots, they are only about 25 yds across, and mostly round or rectangular. In the plots if this size I put on 400-450 lbs of pelletized lime. The ground was completely covered. Do you think this is enough lime for the plots to grow well, I planted Biologic Green Patch Plus, Shot Plot, Buck Forage Oats, Secret Spot, something called Rack Maker??, and some forage turnips. Has anyone used any of these products, and do you think they will grow with the amount of lime I used. I plan to fertilize when plants get about an inch or so tall. Thanks

timbercruiser

Use a GPS or a measuring tape to get an accurate size of your plots. Then the test you have already done ratio per acre will answer your question about the applied need. Problem is that lime take up to 6 months to balance the soil. You can add some more in the spring to make up any deficiencies for the following year..

RonM

I think you should put on the fertilizer now. Probably enough lime to get you started, but it is going to take a while to disolve and get into the soil., for quicker action should;ve used pulverized limestone, but it;s o.k. just takes a little longer......

Wooddust

if you really want to know, retest it in about April to see waht you need now.

kevin1

6 tons ???
What was th PH before you started , 2 ? []

Angus74

Yeah the ph was pretty bad, I think it was like 3.4 or so, I talked to the guys at the local fertilizer plant where I got the lime, and they said that this lime, is pulverized, and will go into the soil faster than the other type, but will also not last as long either. They also said that it usually dont take as much of this type as the normal bulk lime, but it is much more expensive. I dont know much about liming and fertilizing plots yet, but I guess Ill test them again in early spring and see how much more I need then.Oh I almost forgot, I put the lime on and disked the plots about a month or so before I planted them, and disked them again right before I put out the seed. Also what kind of fertilizer should I use on these kinds of plots? Any help is appreciated. Thanks

RonM

Put on some 10-10-10 , it's always a winner about 300#'s

PYseeker

remember the lime doesn't determine how well the plants grow. it determines the acidity of the plant which effects the taste which effects if the deer will eat it or not. You will see better results next year for sure

Wooddust

PY....thats garbage, to be blunt.

Lime impacts soil acidity. Soil acidity impacts availability of nutrients. Low pH means that P ank K are both present but not disolved in the soil solution and thus not available to the plant.

pH has no impact on the flavor of a plant. Its true that some grasses will increase protein content when fertized but ther is no connection between palatability and pH.

1sagittarius

Disking inLime is is the best way to do it. Some lime is good, more lime is better, it would be very difficult to over lime. Put more lime down each year/time you disk the plot.

PYseaker and wooddust are both partially right .... in that a higher ph will allow more nutrients (P and K) to be available to the plants which makes the plants healthier and taste better. If your PH is below 6 though, most of your Phosphorus and Potassium (P & K) will be bound up in the soil and not even available to your plants to utilize. When your PH is below 6, lime is more important than any fertilizer.

What was your soil test recommendations for legumes/clovers/alfalfa? I'm guessing it would be something like 0 Nitrogen, 80 lbs phosphorus, and 200 lbs per acre potassium. If you attempt to use 10-10-10, you can't get close to what legumes might need. 10-10-10 is for little old ladies in their flower gardens.Figure your Phosphorus first, get a fertillizer with as large a middle number as possible, like a 10-20-26 or similar, a 0-42-0 is great but hard to find lately. Then add enough 0-0-60, potassium, to get your K requirement. You will save time and $ by useing larger numbered fertilizers, to get to what your plot really requires.

But again, if your PH is below 6, spend 90% of your effort, time, money on as much lime as you can apply.