Yerington times. [volume] (Yerington, Nev.) 1907-1932, 1915-02-06
INFORMATION THAT ALL
AGRICULTURISTS SHOULD
BE FAMILIAR WITH

The use of lime as fertilizer dates
from the inception of modern scien-
tifc farming. Agricultural chemists
have shown that there are five or six
different functions which lime may
perform to benefit soil, which may
be summarized briefly as follows:
|. 1t is an essential element OF
plant food.
2. 1t adds in the conversion OF
decaying oganic matter into humus.
3. 1t forms compounds with the
humic acids which tend to prevent
their being leached out of the soil and
lost
a. By producing proper sanitary
conditions the growth of injurious bac
terra is largely prevented while the
growth of nitrifying bacteria is en-
couraged. These nitrifying bacteria
convert the nitrogen of the humus into
such form that it is available as a
plant food.
S. Lime aids in the liberation of
potash and PHOSPHORUS from inert
compounds.
6. 1t tends to focculate clay soils,
rendering them granular and more
porous.
Obviously, permanent results can
not be expected unless care is taken
to insure the pesence of some organic
fertilizer at all times. Lime used alone
may be temporarily beneficial, but will
eventually be harmful; when used with
cowpea vines it becomes more effic-
lent for general purposes than almost
any other fertilizer. OF course, lime is
not beneficial to all crops to the same
extent, and not all soils need lime.
Thus, some of the common plants
which are stated by the Department of
Agriculture to be benefited by lime,
are spinach, lettuce, beet, celery,
onion, cucumber, peanut, rhubarb, pea,
pumpkin, bean, tobacco, alfalfa, clo-
yer, barley, wheat, oats, timothy,
gooseberry, currant, orange, ounce,
and cherry. Indian corn is only
slightly benefited
Plants which are said to be slightly
injured by lime are cotton, tomato,
cowpea, concord grape, peach, apple,
and pear, and those really injured are
radish, flax, blackberry, black rasp
berry and cranberry.
Whether soil will respond to linn
ing or not depends on the amount Of
available calcium oxide which it al
ready contains. Probably the best in
failure to obtain good crop of clover.
The question whether lime should
be applied to the soil as quicklime,
hydrated lime, air-slaked lime, or
ground limestone is still the subject
of great deal of controversy. The
advocates of ground limestone claim
that the caustic properties of quick
or hydrated lime will burn up and de
stroy the organic matter in the soil,
whereas limestone can be applied in
large quantities and will therefore
produce more or less permanent fer
tility. The advocates of lime claim
that one of the main functions which
lime has to perform is the destruc-
ton of the organic matter and the lib
Grafton of the nitrogen in such form
that the plant can use it; that the fire.
quent and judicious use of lime, to-
gether with some oganic fertilizer,
will bring immediate results. OF
course the local conditions of each
particular case must be considered be-
fore final conclusion can be reached
Thus, it is rational to use quicklime
on soils which are exceedingly rich
in organic matter, such as peat or
swampy soils. Limestone is safer than
quicklime when applied just before
planting, or when applied to a light,
sandy soil in hot, dry weather.-The
Source. Manufacture and Use of Lime,
U. S. Geological Survey.