Creek chub
Active Member
I wonder if I would see better results broadcasting lime now or waiting and discing in lime in a couple months. Any thoughts?
Lime
- Thread starter Creek chub
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Mennoniteman
Well-Known Member
What's your soil type like? Sandy, good infiltration, or steeper soil with some runoff? Rule of thumb, the sooner you spread lime the better, if runoff isn't an issue. Because lime takes a while to break down and start working. A lot of farmers have their lime spread in the fall to get better results.
Creek chub
Active Member
The soil is sandy upland mountain type. This plot has a very slight grade so runoff will be minimal
Mennoniteman
Well-Known Member
I vote to get your lime out as soon as you can get into the field without making ruts. Ive been spreading my lime and fertilizer on my clover fields with the last frosts, right before it's ready to start growing, that way there's no spreader tracks through the new clover fields. Farmers put their fertilizer out as early as the previous fall for some species of crops, as it can take fertilizers a little time to activate as well.
MarkDarvin
Well-Known Member
If you have any residue at all, I'd get it out there now no matter the slope. My soil is flat and fine sand. I've never worked any of mine in, and the pH movement can be measured as completely adjusted from a fall app as early as next summer. I also get lots of rain to rinse it down too.
Because I cant' till (no equipment) I lean towards pell as well. I've used coarse ground in the past and also gotten fine activation quickly.
Because I cant' till (no equipment) I lean towards pell as well. I've used coarse ground in the past and also gotten fine activation quickly.
FarmerD
Active Member
Pelletized lime is much easier to spread, if you're doing it yourself. If you've got 9 tons of lime needed to be spread, get a truck to come in and do it for you, otherwise, buy pelletized.
Pelletized lime is just AG lime (mostly) that has a binder/sticker added to it, to form the pellets, to make it easy to spread in our little whirlybird spreaders. No real difference, except that with rain, AG lime will start working right away, but with pelletized, the rain will break down the binder first and then the lime will start working. Not worth talking about tho.
Pelletized lime is just AG lime (mostly) that has a binder/sticker added to it, to form the pellets, to make it easy to spread in our little whirlybird spreaders. No real difference, except that with rain, AG lime will start working right away, but with pelletized, the rain will break down the binder first and then the lime will start working. Not worth talking about tho.
FarmerD
Active Member
If this is a brand new plot for you, I would suggest working the lime ASAP into the top 4"-6" of soil, along with any P&K recommend by soil test. You're now working where the roots will be. Unless you have sandy soil like Mark, it can take a while for the lime (ground up rock ... limestone) to work it's way down. In a perennial clover plot, years down the road, just broadcasting lime over top will be great, just to "maintain".
dogghr
Well-Known Member
I spread lime when I bought my place in mid July on unmowed open pasture. ph went from 5.5 to 6-7 the next spring and stayed there for 8 years, just now dropping to 6. No tillage, no nothing. Farmers spread their lime all the time on pasture fields with no tillage. My alfalfa plot is still at 7. So called poor shallow soils. If you can access, allow local feed store spread for you by truck. Doesn't cost much and sure is easier. Only place I spread pellet lime is on roads I can't access. No need make it complicated. Good luck.
MarkDarvin
Well-Known Member
The other nice thing about dolomitic lime is the higher neutralizing power. Pound for pound, dolomitic can do 165% of what a calcitic lime can do. Another nice bonus of lighter sandy soil. Not only is dolomitic lime cheaper in the midwest, it also doesn't take quite as much to get the job done.
Good to know. Do you know if the bagged pelletized lime at Tractor Supply is dolomitic? Does it say on the bag?
MarkDarvin
Well-Known Member
Are your plots small enough that you can spread w/ a broadcast (push) spreader? If so, look into Solu-Cal if you can find it near you. Easy to spread, takes way less, & is super fast acting. Only drawback is it's expensive.
http://www.solu-cal.com/?gclid=EAIaIQobChMI1ICsxMP34AIVyyaGCh1nKAhfEAAYASAAEgJ9NvD_BwE
http://www.solu-cal.com/?gclid=EAIaIQobChMI1ICsxMP34AIVyyaGCh1nKAhfEAAYASAAEgJ9NvD_BwE
Creek chub
Active Member
Have you tried solution-cal?
Creek chub
Active Member
I bought a bag of solu cal today for about a .25 to .3 acre plot. The soil is former standing timber about 10 years ago and been weeds since.
I tried a buckwheat crop in May but it didn’t amount to much. I planted in a hurry with a few bags of lime and fertilizer with a guesstimated ph of 5.
Round # 2 tomorrow with solu cal, 4 bags of fertilizer and a healthy dose of buckwheat and maybe a little pearl millet
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