Lawns and Grass (pH adjustment of soil?)

[shanec]

I figure there's several intelligent people here that might be able to help me out without registering for a multitude of other forums to try and get some insight and suggestions.

We used Virginia Tech's soil lab to get a test done on our lawn as it's "Patchy" with a "spring Mix" to put it nicely. (Or dead spots, weeds, and clover to be more accurate).

Hopefully my formatting will be readable, anyway here's what we came back with:

(all in lb/A)
P     51  (med-high)
K   115  (Med)
Ca 1169 (Med-High)
Mg  203 (High bordering on Very High)

(In PPM)
Zn   7.9ppm (Sufficient)
Mn  8.3ppm (Sufficient)
Cu   0.6ppm (Sufficient)
Fe  17.6ppm (Sufficient)
B    0.1ppm  (Sufficient)

Soil pH:          5.4
Buffer Index:  5.95
Est-CEC:         7.8 (meq/100g)
Accidity %:    34.2
Base Sat %:   65.9
Ca Sat %:      53.3
Mg Sat %:      10.7
K Sat %:          1.9

Crop: LAWN MAINTENANCE - BLUEGRASS, FESCUE (202)
612. LIME RECOMMENDATIONS: Apply 150 pounds of agricultural limestone (ground, pulverized or pelletized) per 1000 square feet in several
small applications of up to 50 lbs each, at intervals of 1 to 6 months, until the full amount is applied.

991. Numbered notes are viewable at http://www.soiltest.vt.edu/Files/publications.html

208. FERTILIZER RECOMMENDATIONS:  Use any complete "turf-type" fertilizer according to the instructions in the note on lawn
fertilization.  (A "turf-type" fertilizer is typically high in nitrogen, and has little or no phosphorus and potassium, e.g., 25-0-7.)

Now based on our yard being about 0.33 acres (14,000+ square feet) - their recommendation seems like a ton of lime.

And since lime usually includes the Calcium as well, will that bone us?

What's the best method of adjusting our soil pH while keeping everything else happy?

 

[RobinGordon]

Oh gosh - imperial measurements.
Apply 737 lbs of lime to the area 3 times
Best applied just before small rain event - such as 10-15 mm of rain.

Lime is CaO and reacts with the acid in the soil to create Ca+ and H2O. Much of the Ca+ will attach itself to the soil particles and be pretty innocuous.

Calcium is unlikely to be an issue in your garden because the soil is quit acidic. I assume that you're either in a moderate to high rainfall area (greater than 500 mm per year) or the land was previously agricultural or both.

Ca is a great cation to have in the soil - it prevents clay dispersion (horribly mucky clay that sets really hard) and promotes soil stability and ped formation.
By boning, I presume you mean form a calcium hard pan. Unlikely in such an acidic environment.

Gordon (soil scientist) (sorry for the shortness - holding kitten in one hand)

 

[RobinGordon]

Oh, and with nitrogen-rich fertilizers - DO NOT apply before rain. Apply before a couple of days of dry weather and water in. The rain will leach the nitrogen out of the soil and you'll end up fertilizing the neighbours downhill instead.

 

[shanec]

Gordon, that's unfortunately about what I expected to hear, but I appreciate the reply!

Any tips of putting down down that amount of lime? Or where to acquire it in large batches? I know the local big box stores (Home Depot, Lowes, etc) have 40lb bags and I've got a "mini" walk behind seed spreader, but that seems like a painful and expensive way of going about laying out that much lime.

I wonder if any of the farm supply places would have something?

Oh, and by "boning the yard" - I don't know what a Calcium Hard Pan is - but I meant just upsetting the balance of nutrients that are there currently. The way I read the report, I think we're good on most nutrients/micro-nutrients, but just out of whack with the pH balance.

--ShaneC - Not a scientist.