Does Your Yard Need Lawn Lime?

Lawn lime is an important ingredient of a healthy and green lawn. However, because liming your lawn can be a double-bladed sword where too much lime is damaging as well as too little lime, you have to be careful.

There are several steps to take before using lawn lime. Remember that the pH level of your lawn is important for a green and healthy turf.

How does it affect your lawn?

The pH level or acidity of the soil is important for the health and vigor of your turf. Low pH level of below 6.0 considers your soil as acidic. High pH level of over 7.0 describes your soil as alkaline.

A pH level of 6.0 to 7.0 will tell you that your soil is healthy and you do not need lime.

How do you know if you need lime?

You have to have your soil tested.

While you can buy soil pH level tester in your local store, some of these gadgets may not provide you with an accurate reading.

The best way to test the acidity of your soil is to bring samples of the soil to your local extension office.

You have to get several samples from different areas of your lawn to bring for testing.

After the test is conducted in your soil, the local extension office will provide you with a reading.

If after testing, it is found that your soil is acidic, you have to apply lawn lime. However, for an alkaline soil or pH level of greater and 7.0, what you need is a gardener's sulfur to add some acid into the soil.

Managing the pH level of your soil does not act as a fertilizer to your grass. Yes, a good pH level is going to be helpful to your grass growth but the action of liming or applying sulfur is not to feed the grass but rather to help the grass absorb important nutrients as calcium and magnesium.

Acidic soils are low on calcium and magnesium. Lawn lime will help improve the level of calcium and magnesium in the soil and therefore will help the grass receive these important nutrients.

Likewise, grass toxicity from elements such as aluminum, manganese and iron from an acidic soil will be minimized or even eradicated by liming the soil when necessary.

Finally, the rate of application is important. Applying lawn lime often is not good for the health of your turf. The recommended rate of application is once every three to five years.

Again, do not apply lime without having your soil tested. While it is true that the soil composition of a certain area can be defined as acidic or alkaline, you cannot assume that your lawn is acidic as the other soil within the community because maintenance and other factors can change yours as compared to the rest.

Liming the soil before planning is best but an established lawn will likewise benefit from lawn lime application if the pH level of the soil warrants. Be careful with your lawn because green and healthy lawns improve the property both in price and owner pride.