Lime Poisoning

[Gary350]

I had a 50 lbs bag of white hyd lime I need to get rid of. I sprinlked it between the rows of my TN garden 6 weeks ago. I made sure to keep the lime away from the plants. Yesterday I notice all my plants are turning white and dieing. The green leaves have lost their color and are now white, wilted and close to death. I knew hyd lime could kill plants but I did not know such a small amount 2 ft from the plants would kill the tomatoes, bell peppers, beans and squash. So far the okra is fine.

[jal_ut]

Darn. Yes, lime is very caustic and plant roots go out quite a ways in all directions. I am hearing that lime is used by many gardeners with acid soil to change the ph. A little goes a long way. I am thinking it is probably best used late in the fall and tilled in then left over winter to do its thing. I never use lime here as our soils are base anyway. At this point, about all you can do is water well and see how it goes.

[Dillbert]

hydrated lime
and
agricultural lime

are two different animals.

and have seriously different results, as mentioned by the OP

[GardenRN]

I'm thinking coffee grinds, if you have some, may help neutralize it?

An acid occurs when you have an excess of hydrogen. Neutralizers work by locking up those excess hydrogen atoms, which you did, but maybe you went too far. So adding something acidic, like coffee grinds would bring the now basic soil back up to a more neutral level. Just a thought. Just don't over do it that way again lol. Remember, each number on the pH scale, depending on which way you move is 10x greater than the previous.

By the way, if you have some red/purple cabbage, you can boil a half head of it, and then use the water to test your pH.

Just boil it until it turns the water nice and purple. The color in the cabbage contains anthocyanin, which is a flavenoid that indicates the pH. Take a small sample of your soil, and mix it up in some water, like in a shot glass or something. Then add some of the purple water. See what color it changes, and then compare to a pH scale online, or if you have one at home. You'll have a good idea of what your pH is then in your garden, and how much farther you have to go.


There's an old biology 101 experiment coming back in handy for ya!

[rainbowgardener]

It's really a myth (that is frequently perpetuated) that used coffee grounds are particularly acidic. The acid went in to the coffee when it was brewed.

Yes hydrated lime is definitely more caustic than garden lime and 50# bag is NOT a "small amount."

"Usually application rates are 2 to 3 pounds per 100 square feet of garden area, every couple of years to raise the pH from 5.5 to 6.5. Never apply more than 5 pounds per 100 square feet at any one time." https://www.vegetable-gardening-gnomes.com/garden_lime.html

And that was talking about garden lime. The rate for hydrated lime would be less. So say maximum should have been (making a number up here) 2.5 pounds per 100 sq feet, the 50 pound bag should have been spread over 2000 sq feet, IF your soil was acid to start with and you wanted to neutralize it.

I wouldn't try using acid to try to bring it back, just lots of organic matter and water.... Acid and base react together to produce salts and you don't want to raise the salt content of your soil either.

[applestar]

I came cross hydrated lime refs while looking up info on "clubroot". Here is a *typical* recommendation for using hydrated lime against clubroot, which involves significantly raising oil pH before planting --

Maintain the soil pH at least at 6.8, preferably above 7.2. This high pH may adversely affect some rotation crops. Add at least 1500 lb/acre of hydrated lime when planting in clubroot infested soils that are pH 7.0 and above. Lower pH may require more hydrated lime. Apply the lime at least 6 weeks before setting out the crop.

https://umaine.edu/ipm/ipddl/publications/5096e/

[rainbowgardener]

1 acre = 43, 560 sq ft.

So at that rate the 50# would be applied to 1450 sq feet, so my made up number wasn't that far off. AND that is to get the pH higher than you would want it for any veggie crops.

[applestar]

Well, we might infer that crops in mustard family -- winter mustard and collard greens, kale, cabbage, radish, turnip, rutabaga, many Asian greens, etc. -- might do OK and be good crop to grow here after 6 weeks. And they also happen to be cool weather crops.