Spreading ag lime options

Creek chub

Active Member
I can’t get a spreader truck to some of my plots. Has anyone tried spreading ag lime with a atv pull behind drop spreader?
 
It might work ...... but I'd be more inclined to buy pelletized lime at TSC ..... I think it's on sale right now. Might cost you $120 - $150/ton but it does spread good.

You can also keep a look out for one of these old 10 foot wide lime spreaders. I cut this one down, to go down some narrow trails, so overall, it's 6 feet wide. It spreads dry AG lime pretty good. Wet AG lime, not so good. It was my Grandfathers 1956 lime spreader that he took very good care of. If you can find one that's not all rusted out, it might be worth your while. Amazingly, these were also set up to spread wheat, oats, rye, barley, etc. Just a small adjustment and you're good to go. Top left hand corner of the "inside" picture, shows a chart for the adjustments.



Doug 027.jpg Lime spreader.JPG
 
For some applications/conditions, I’m forced to use pellet lime because of access issues. When it’s dry, and in my more accessible plots, I use a fertilizer spreader to spread bulk ag lime. It can be hard to spread evenly/light enough, but delivered costs for 17 ton is about $600 (everything is stupid expensive here).
 
Creek, I've spread quite a bit in small plots, but all bagged ag lime is not equal. The bagged lime that I buy at my feed store is just like the pile he loads his trucks with. It spreads very well with my three-point spreader. The bagged lime I bought at TSC last week was just like flour and it bridged in the hopper so badly I had to drop and catch the spreader multiple times to make the lime fall to the spreader plate. It was cheaper, but a lot more difficult to spread. I'll just pay $2 a bag more for it from now on. :(
 
Unless they are large plots, I'd just use pelllot lime. Easy to spread and manage. I've done such with pull behind and even a hand bag spreader.
 
I can’t get a spreader truck to some of my plots. Has anyone tried spreading ag lime with a atv pull behind drop spreader?

Yes and it will work, kinda. You have two problems. One is lime bridging in the spreader and the other is the spread pattern once you get it on to the spinner(s).

When I was young, had no money and more time than brains I did it - with a friend. Somebody always has to be pushing the lime off the sides of the spreader and breaking the bridge over the hole.

Now that I'm old, fat, and still dumb I chose pellitized lime for most applications.

But, a pull behind drop spreader (with a working agitator?), is damn near perfect with the caveats above still relevant.
 
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