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How much lyme do I add to very acidic soil?
Vinny will know, I'm sure.
I haven't a clue. There's a bag of 20 year old lime in my shed and I still don't know how to use it.
(10-04-2023, 02:54 PM)Veggie Wrote: [ -> ]Vinny will know, I'm sure.
I haven't a clue. There's a bag of 20 year old lime in my shed and I still don't know how to use it.
I’m exactly the same. I’ve had a big pile of it sat next to my compost bins just growing a lovely selection of weeds for the last 9 years.  Blush 
I know I’ll need it in the new garden. So I’ve taken the weedy rooty top off the pile and dug me a bucket full. 
plus I don’t want to leave it for the landlord    Big Grin .
I have never had to use lime for the garden, but I'm keen to learn, so I goggled it and RHS recommends that if you use more than half a kilo per square meter, to sprinkle half of it and dig it in, then sprinkle the rest on top.

https://www.rhs.org.uk/soil-composts-mul...ime-liming
There's a useful table on that page, that I meant to mention lol
Thanks that’s definitely points me in the right direction.
I’m definitely going to have to dig the rest of my pile of lime.
(10-04-2023, 02:54 PM)Veggie Wrote: [ -> ]Vinny will know, I'm sure.
I haven't a clue. There's a bag of 20 year old lime in my shed and I still don't know how to use it.
Thanks for your faith in my abilities Veggie but in this instance I am not much help! Blush My Uncle had a smallholding on acid soil and seemed to manage ok without liming? I did use magnesium limestone (crushed dolomite) on one of my plots, particularily in the areas I was growing brassicas.I believe the brown Magnesium limestone doesn't cause potatoes to 'scab' like the white garden lime does?
As an aside, in my first garden I ever had I burried loads of plasterboard from the house renovation  and covered it with soil. I grew the best broad beans I have ever grown on top of plasterboard.
I personally would go with the RHS recommendations and liberlly apply to the surface,dig it in then re apply? You could of course interogate your immediate neighbours and see how they managed?
Thanks Vinny.
No one else actually gardens in the villages. Just kinda maintain what’s there.
The ones that do garden, ask me for advice………….poor deluded fools  Big Grin
I think what the local farmers do is get an existing soil Ph test done (seem to remember it was around 4.5 Ph round where I lived, which is very acid) then apply the appropriate amount of lime to bring it to the ideal Ph for the crop you are growing (normally around 6.5 Ph methinks?) If you google it I am sure you will find a formulae for how much to apply per Acre/Hectare/Square yard/metre.
I know it's a lot, but you have to decide which areas you need to treat and which can get away without it?
Thanks Vinny it’s only really the cottage garden area that needs it.
The veggie garden will be all raised beds so should need very little. The rest of the garden will grow what it grows.