I noticed someone on here had a ph of 5.1 Well I had a 4.7. I was told to add lime and put down 3,367 pounds (over a ton and a half) on half an acre. I am going up tomorrow to do another test and start putting in some fertilizer. I have a few questions that I hope someone can tell me pretty quick.

1: Why did they tell me to put the lime on top and not to till it in. It seems it would integrate into the soil better or does it need rain or something to mnake it leach into the dirt?

2: i realize that that is a LOT of lime for the dirt but the PH sucks. My question is would it have been better to put less on the soil and add to it every week or so or does it not matter.

3: Should I till it under and mix the soil yet or is it to soon.

My objective is to try to get iron clay peas to grow fast enough so that the deer do not mow it down in a month.

Thank You,


Chris

I would make 2 split applications, one now and one in the fall. If your plot is in Florida, then your ground is not froze which would be the only reason I can of not to try tilling it in. Its not good to apply a big amount of lime at one time.

When I worked for a local coop, we would regularly spread 3 tons/acre of lime.Up here in the northland, that is a common practice for alfalfa fields. I can not think of a good reasontoleave lime in the soil surface. They may have suggested not to work it in so it neutralized the top of the soil profile, making look like your soil hada higher pH if you re-sampled. All lime and fertilizers need water to make them work and/or be available to plants. Mixing it in will give ithe lime a lot more soil to work with and neutralize more soil acidity faster. You could always grow blueberries, I wish I had a small plot with a pH of 4.7 to grow them!

I'd mix it in in the top 6"

I was told most soils can only handle 3 tons/acre per year of lime max.-
I'm sure they want you to keep the lime in the upper few inches of soil for best effect this year.

Truthfullly you'll need a couple years before the soil is changed to a point that you can grow clovers easily.

Iron clay peas might grow this year - but its not a sure thing. Rye, oats, corn, even soybeans can grow OK in Ph of 5.0 to 5.5.
I'd put down the 6000 lbs & concentrate on an an annual this year - and re-test in the spring if it were me.

FH

You need one ton of lime per acre to raise the PH one point.
It's a logarithmic calculation, so a ph of 5 is ten times more acidic than a PH of 6.

If you can work the lime in to the soil 6-8 inches (think root zone) then you will be better off. It will take 6 months to get the soil to integrate the lime in to its composition. Lime helps the plant uptake nutrients and make them available for the plants.

Iron clay peas if I am not mistaken only require a PH of 5.5 to 6. so if you were at 4.7 you need one tone per acre to bring it to 5.7, which should be good for IC peas.