[greg.t]

hi all, just wondering if its ok to dig compost in and then lime or should l lime first?  :blink:

[VirginVegGrower]

You would generally lime after compost/manure not together normally. I assume you are talking about your brassica area? A month apart used to be the rule. You could just lime..?

[Kajazy]

Not manure and lime together - from what I've understood, they react together negating the beneficial effects of each

But what do I know? This is my first year of growing, and all I've got is a site-full-o-weeds!

[Yorkie]

Not manure and lime together - from what I've understood, they react together negating the beneficial effects of each

But what do I know? This is my first year of growing, and all I've got is a site-full-o-weeds!

I think you're right 

[solway cropper]

There are two conflicting ideas on this:

1. compost/manure in the autumn to give it time to be incorporated into the soil by worms, etc then lime in spring so it doesn't all get washed away by winter rains.

2. lime in the winter as it takes 2-3 months for it to break down in the soil then compost in the spring to make any nutrients available to new plants.

Either way there is always a good gap between the two applications and it really all depends on why you are applying the compost and the lime.

[viettaclark]

I use mushroom compost which has lime in it so what happens there?

[Ma and Pa Snip]

I use mushroom compost which has lime in it so what happens there?

Errmm good question, to which I dont know the answer 


but personally in order to take away any possible taste of lime  I would add a bit of garlic to any mushrooms that might grow   

[greg.t]

l know not to put lime on manure, l'm talking about bagged compost, some growers add it to compost when potting on brassicas so not sure if it's ok to dig some compost in just before limeing my brassica bed hope thats a bit more clear...

[ex-cavator]

I use mushroom compost which has lime in it so what happens there?

... and what about sewage sludge which is composted with lime? As used by many farmers on food crops? 

[mumofstig]

l know not to put lime on manure, l'm talking about bagged compost, some growers add it to compost when potting on brassicas so not sure if it's ok to dig some compost in just before limeing my brassica bed hope thats a bit more clear...

That should be fine, as I also add a little lime to the compost in pots when I pot on cabbages that are waiting to go in

[JayG]

Lime causes the release of gaseous ammonia because it reacts with the ammoniacal compounds present in fresh manure. This is only really a problem if the gas is allowed to escape; if the reaction happens in the soil the ammonia will readily dissolve in the soil water and eventually be converted to nitrate food.

My conclusion is that if the manure is buried and the lime sprinkled on top the nitrogen loss would be minimal, as it also would be if they were both dug in at the same time.

A very readable and informative article HERE (the bit about lime + manure is about 2/3rds of the way down the page under "Lime/Slaked lime")

[billathome65]

Why do I see people talking about adding lime to soil? why is this done as it is my understanding that lime is a corrosive?

OK I'm thick so tell me 

[DD.]

Have a look at this from this very site:

http://www.allotment-garden.org/fertilizer/garden-lime.php

[greg.t]

some great stuff there thanks for your replys....

[Dirt Diver]

Interesting - very interesting