Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1917-09-04
LACK OF LIME
LIMITS YIELDS
County Farm Agent Says it
Should Pave Way For
Color

Crop yields are limited by any
lack of lime" H. G. Niesley. county
farm agent, says. when this is the
case good farming requires that the
lack be supplied. The chief us9 of
lime is to correct soil acidity. Soil
ecidity may be detected by the litmus
paper test. Moist acid soil will turn
Diue minus paper pink. The practical
farmer can detect soil acidity from
the character of the vegetation. When
alslke clover thrives far better than
red clover. rep top supplants timothy
ana sorrel and plantain take the
ground that should be occupied by
good sod. there Is such strong prob.
aolllty OF lime deficiency that the
pennsylvania farmer does well tc
rake an application of lime.
In the use of lime one has a choic,
of ground limestone. buried lime nv.
drafted lime and air-slacked lime. A
ton OF pure limestone after beint
burned viii weigh 1,12O pounds,
enough water is added to this l.12t
pounds to hydrate it, the resultins
material will have total weight o
| l,4SO pounds. If the 1,12O pounds o
burned lime. or the 1,4SO pounds o
hydrated lime, are allowed to air
slack the weight will again be 200
| pounds. Air-slacked lime, therefore
mas the sane composition as grount
limestone. Ground limestone is cheap
er however, than air-slacked lime
Hydrated lime contains considerabl,
water. One cannot afford to pa,
freight on water. Ones choice theI
! in buying lime economically must b,
! between ground limestone and burned
lime.
Whlle some experiments seem I,
show to show that ground limeston,
has given a little better returns tina,
the caustic forms, such returns ar,
rot usually sufficiently greater to jus
tify the use of ground limestone at
disproportionate price.
Fineness is essential in applyinl
pulverized lime. Experiments at tn,
Pennsylvania State College School O.
Agriculture and Experiment Station
show that in order to be prompt anc
enective in its action pulverized lime
stone should be fine. enough to allow
ninety per cent. of il to pass a 60.
mesh screen.
The quantity of lime per acre va.
ries. If soil is a tenacious clay anC
physical improvement is desired, al
application of two or three tons o.
stone lime may be profitable. Ordi.
nary lime is applied to make a sol
friendly to clover and other plant.
and the equivalent of one to one anC
one-half tons of stone lime per acre
applied once once in each crop rota
tlon is usually a maximum amount.
An application of lime usually
should pave the way for clover. L
is well to apply lime a year or NOR,
before the seeding of clover. If thi.
has not been done it may be applied
when the seedbed is made for wheat
oats or other crop with which clover
Is to be seeded.
Flowing lime down is wasteful. Ap
ply with a lime spreader after grounC
has been plowed. Mix it with the
soil by the use of harrow. 1t shoulc
not be drilled in with seeds, mixel
with commercial fertilizer nor useC
in place of a fertilizer. Apply lin,
to meet the lime requirement of the
soil and when this has been Ssne ust
manure and commercial fertilizers II
the ways that have been found prof
liable for the crops to be grown.