Lifting pH without lime?

[Macsky]

Can soil pH be lifted by cultural methods, without the addition of lime or the likes?

Drainage? Cultivation?...

 

[Derrick Hughes]

No

 

[Timbo]

Fraid you will have to bite the bullet.

 

[Panzer]

yes. worm crap ph 7. encourage more worms.

 

[Macsky]

yes. worm crap ph 7. encourage more worms.

By liming?

 

[Macsky]

If a burst drain can turn the ground sour, you’d think that drainage/aeration would have the opposite effect?

 

[Bury the Trash]

If a burst drain can turn the ground sour, you’d think that drainage/aeration would have the opposite effect?

it does to a degree.

A ploughed up field can test better than before ploughing.

 

[Guleesh]

By liming?

No, by leaving sufficient litter to feed them, and perhaps taking it easy on the chemicals?

 

[Derrick Hughes]

Lime is the best investment you will ever make
Its the keystone to all you do

 

[Jockers84]

Shell sand

 

[Bald Rick]

In theory you can by using lime treated sewage sludge

 

[Extreme Optimist]

Yes. Muck. I have raised the pH of my soils using FYM.

 

[PSQ]

yes. worm crap ph 7. encourage more worms.

It takes an alkali to neutralise an acid soil.
Worm cast at pH7 is neutral, and can’t neutralise soil but will slightly dilute it. But with 3000 tonnes of top soil to the acre you’ll need to find a species of worm with at least 2 arseholes.

 

[Kidds]

Or cut the ones you have already into two

 

[Pistonbroke]

Long term,it makes you wonder where the lime will come from,though. It's not as if someone is making it from scratch and our local lime quarry has exhausted all the limestone in the seam so cotswold lime is being hauled at far greater expense

 

[Treg]

Can soil pH be lifted by cultural methods, without the addition of lime or the likes?

Drainage? Cultivation?...

Depends on your soil & what it's natural ph should be , most Intensive farming methods lower ph , artificial fertilisers, chemicals etc.
Composting your manure , diversity of plants & longer breaks between grazing should help over long term to restore it's natural balance.

 

[Bogweevil]

Can soil pH be lifted by cultural methods, without the addition of lime or the likes?

Drainage? Cultivation?...

Yes, great granfer dug marl subsoil (calcareous clay) from pits around the field and spread that - killed him in end but transformed the fields forever. Should be easier with mechanical excavators - I wonder it is not widely done.

 

[Macsky]

Lime is the best investment you will ever make
Its the keystone to all you do

I fully believe this and don’t dispute it, love a good calcium lime, just curious really. There’s not an acre here that wouldn’t benefit tremendously from 2t+, but it’s just so expensive getting good stuff here, so just exploring every option really.

 

[sherg]

Chicken muck out of layers will help

 

[beardface]

Makes you wonder how soil balanced itself prior to humans.