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Agricultural lime
 
 
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Agricultural lime, also called garden lime or liming (soil), is a soil
Soil

Soil is the naturally occurring, unconsolidated or loose covering on the Earth's surface. Soil is composed of particles of broken rock that have been altered by chemical and environmental processes including weathering and erosion....
 additive made from pulverized limestone
Limestone

File:Limestone Formation In Waitomo.jpgLimestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the mineral calcite . The deposition of limestone strata is often a by-product and indicator of biological activity in the geology record....
 or chalk
Chalk

Chalk is a soft, white, porous sedimentary rock, a form of limestone composed of the mineral calcite. It forms under relatively deep marine conditions from the gradual accumulation of minute calcite plates shed from micro-organisms called coccolithophores....
. The primary active component is calcium carbonate
Calcium carbonate

Calcium carbonate is a chemical compound with the chemical formula CalciumCarbonOxygen3. It is a common substance found as Rock in all parts of the world, and is the main component of seashells, snails, and eggshells....
. Additional chemicals vary depending on the mineral
Mineral

A mineral is a naturally occurring solid formed through Geology processes that has a characteristic chemical composition, a highly ordered atomic structure, and specific physical properties....
 source and may include calcium oxide
Calcium oxide

Calcium oxide , commonly known as burnt lime, Lime or quicklime, is a widely used chemical compound. It is a white, Caustic and alkaline crystalline solid at room temperature....
, magnesium oxide
Magnesium oxide

Magnesium oxide, or magnesia, is a white solid mineral that occurs naturally as periclase and is a source of magnesium . It has an empirical formula of ....
 and magnesium carbonate
Magnesium carbonate

Magnesium carbonate, MgCO3, is a white solid that occurs in nature as a mineral. Several hydrated and Base forms of magnesium carbonate also exist as minerals....
.

Effects on soil:

Lime
Lime (mineral)

Lime is a general term for calcium-containing inorganic materials, in which carbonates, oxides and hydroxides predominate. Strictly speaking, lime is calcium oxide or calcium hydroxide....
 may occur naturally in some soils but may require addition of sulfuric acid
Sulfuric acid

Sulfuric acid, hydrogen2sulfuroxygen4, is a strong mineral acid. It is soluble in water at all concentrations. Sulfuric acid has many applications, and is one of the top products of the chemical industry....
 for its agricultural benefits to be realized. Gypsum
Gypsum

Gypsum is a very soft mineral composed of calcium sulfate dihydrate, with the chemical formula calciumsulfuroxygen4?2water....
 is also used to supply calcium for plant nutrition.

Other forms of lime have common applications in agriculture and gardening, including dolomitic lime and hydrated lime.






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Encyclopedia


Agricultural lime, also called garden lime or liming (soil), is a soil
Soil

Soil is the naturally occurring, unconsolidated or loose covering on the Earth's surface. Soil is composed of particles of broken rock that have been altered by chemical and environmental processes including weathering and erosion....
 additive made from pulverized limestone
Limestone

File:Limestone Formation In Waitomo.jpgLimestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the mineral calcite . The deposition of limestone strata is often a by-product and indicator of biological activity in the geology record....
 or chalk
Chalk

Chalk is a soft, white, porous sedimentary rock, a form of limestone composed of the mineral calcite. It forms under relatively deep marine conditions from the gradual accumulation of minute calcite plates shed from micro-organisms called coccolithophores....
. The primary active component is calcium carbonate
Calcium carbonate

Calcium carbonate is a chemical compound with the chemical formula CalciumCarbonOxygen3. It is a common substance found as Rock in all parts of the world, and is the main component of seashells, snails, and eggshells....
. Additional chemicals vary depending on the mineral
Mineral

A mineral is a naturally occurring solid formed through Geology processes that has a characteristic chemical composition, a highly ordered atomic structure, and specific physical properties....
 source and may include calcium oxide
Calcium oxide

Calcium oxide , commonly known as burnt lime, Lime or quicklime, is a widely used chemical compound. It is a white, Caustic and alkaline crystalline solid at room temperature....
, magnesium oxide
Magnesium oxide

Magnesium oxide, or magnesia, is a white solid mineral that occurs naturally as periclase and is a source of magnesium . It has an empirical formula of ....
 and magnesium carbonate
Magnesium carbonate

Magnesium carbonate, MgCO3, is a white solid that occurs in nature as a mineral. Several hydrated and Base forms of magnesium carbonate also exist as minerals....
.

Effects on soil:
  • it increases the pH
    PH

    pH is a measure of the Acid or Base of a solution. It is defined as the cologarithm of the Activity of dissolved hydrogen ions . Hydrogen ion activity coefficients cannot be measured experimentally, so they are based on theoretical calculations....
     of acid
    Acid

    An acid is traditionally considered any chemical compound that, when dissolved in water, gives a solution with a hydrogen ion Activity greater than in pure water, i.e....
    ic soil
    Soil

    Soil is the naturally occurring, unconsolidated or loose covering on the Earth's surface. Soil is composed of particles of broken rock that have been altered by chemical and environmental processes including weathering and erosion....
     (the higher the pH the less acidic the soil)
  • it provides a source of calcium
    Calcium

    Calcium is the chemical element with the symbol Ca and atomic number 20. It has an atomic mass of 40.078 amu. Calcium is a soft grey alkaline earth metal, and is the fifth most abundant element by mass in the earth's Crust ....
     for plants
  • it permits improved water penetration for acid
    Acid

    An acid is traditionally considered any chemical compound that, when dissolved in water, gives a solution with a hydrogen ion Activity greater than in pure water, i.e....
    ic soils


Lime
Lime (mineral)

Lime is a general term for calcium-containing inorganic materials, in which carbonates, oxides and hydroxides predominate. Strictly speaking, lime is calcium oxide or calcium hydroxide....
 may occur naturally in some soils but may require addition of sulfuric acid
Sulfuric acid

Sulfuric acid, hydrogen2sulfuroxygen4, is a strong mineral acid. It is soluble in water at all concentrations. Sulfuric acid has many applications, and is one of the top products of the chemical industry....
 for its agricultural benefits to be realized. Gypsum
Gypsum

Gypsum is a very soft mineral composed of calcium sulfate dihydrate, with the chemical formula calciumsulfuroxygen4?2water....
 is also used to supply calcium for plant nutrition.

Other forms of lime have common applications in agriculture and gardening, including dolomitic lime and hydrated lime. Dolomitic lime may be used as a soil input to provide similar effects as agricultural lime, while supplying magnesium
Magnesium

Magnesium is a chemical element with the symbol Mg, atomic number 12, atomic weight 24.3050 and common oxidation number +2.Magnesium, an alkaline earth metal, is the ninth most abundance of the chemical elements in the universe by mass....
 in addition to calcium. In livestock farming, hydrated lime can be used as a disinfectant measure, producing a dry and alkaline environment in which bacteria
Bacteria

The Bacteria are a large group of unicellular microorganisms. Typically a few micrometres in length, bacteria have a wide range of shapes, ranging from spheres to rods and spirals....
 do not readily multiply. In horticultural farming it can be used as an insect repellant, without causing harm to the pest or plant.

Spinner style lime spreaders are generally used to spread agricultural lime on fields. Several companies such as Stoltzfus Spreaders manufacture spreaders for this purpose.

External links



See also

  • Marl
    Marl

    Marl or Marlstone is a calcium carbonate or lime-rich mud or mudstone which contains variable amounts of clays and aragonite. Marl is originally an old term loosely applied to a variety of materials, most of which occur as loose, earthy deposits consisting chiefly of an intimate mixture of clay and calcium carbonate, formed under...
  • Liming (soil)
  • Soil pH
    Soil pH

    The pH is a measure of the acidity or alkalinity of a solution. An acid solution has a pH value less than 7. While a basic solution always has a pH larger than 7, an alkaline solution does not necessarily have a pH larger than 7....