The pH of any substance indicates its acidity or alkalinity. Soil pH affects activity within the soil and affects hence plant production. Maintaining a suitable pH for the pasture or crops grown is an important part of soil health.
Farmers can influence soil acidity and manage it for best results.
Natural acidification of soils is a very slow process but when land is fertilised and pasture established the process is accelerated. Important soil properties and processes are affected by increasing acidity. Some of these elements can be toxic to plants, restricting root growth and reducing plant growth. The numbers and activity of earthworms and soil microbes are reduced, slowing down the release of nutrients from organic matter and reducing soil drainage and aeration. Nitrogen fixation by legumes is reduced because there is less available molybdenum and nitrogen-fixing rhizobia are less active.