Right Use of Lime in Soil Improvement

Formerly director of agricultural extension in the Pennsylvania State College and New Jersey State College of Agriculture. Illustrated NEW YORK ORANGE JUDD COMPANY LONDON KEGAN PAUL, TRENCH, TRUBNER & CO., LIMITED 1919 Copyright 1919, by ORANGE JUDD COMPANY All Rights Reserved Printed in U. S. A. CONTENTS 1. Introduction 1 2. The Lime in Soils 4 3. Sour Soils 10 4. Evidences of Acidity 15 5. Tests for Acidity 20 6. Sources of Lime 24 7. Definitions 28 8. Ground Limestone 33 9. Storing Lime in the Soil 38 10. Fresh Burned Lime 44 11. Burning Lime 49 12. Lime Hydrate 53 13. Other Forms of Lime 57 14. Magnesian Lime 64 15. What Shall One Buy ? 68 16. Methods of Application 78 17. Amount of Lime per Acre 82 18. Special Crop Demands 86 ILLUSTRATIONS Applying Lime Frontispiece 1. Clover and Timothy Unfertilized at the Pennsylvania Experiment Station Yielded 2,460 pounds per acre 10 II. Clover and Timothy with Lime alone at the the Pennsylvania Experiment Station Yielded 3,900 pounds per acre 11 III. Clover and Timothy with Lime alone at the Pennsylvania Experiment Station Yielded 4,900 pounds per acre 14 IV. Clover and Timothy with Fertilizer and Lime at the Pennsylvania Experiment Station yielded 6,290 pounds per acre 15 V. Limed and Unlimed Ends of a Plot at the Ohio Experiment Station 16 VI. Effect of Finely Pulverized Limestone on Clover in a Soil having a Lime Requirement of 5,200 Pounds of Limestone per Acre, at the Pennsylvania Experiment Station 17 VII. Lime Favors Clover at the Ohio Experiment Station 24 VIII. Lime Affects Growth of Corn at the Ohio Experiment Station 25 IX. An Indiana Limestone Quarry 32 X. A Limestone Plant (Courtesy of the Michigan Limestone Company.) 33 XI. A Limestone Pulverizer for Farm Use (Courtesy of the Jeffrey Manufacturing Company, Columbus, Ohio.) 38 XII. A Lime Pulver in Operation (Courtesy of the Jeffrey Manufacturing Company.) 39 XIII. Laying Foundation for a Lime Stack at the Pennsylvania Experiment Station 48 XIV. A Stack nearly Completed at the Pennsylvania Experiment Station 49 XV. Effect of Excessive Use of Burned Lime without Manure at the Pennsylvania Experiment Station 52 XVI. A Hydrated Lime Plant (Courtesy of the Palmer Lime and Cement Company, York, Pa. 53 XVII. Filling the Lime Spreader at the Ohio Experiment Station 78 XVIII. Lime Distributors 79 XIX. Remarkable Effect of Lime on Sweet…