More acid soil!!!!

[Nicos]

Well- just had a local gardener/farmer over to look at our newly dug patch of field- and he's asked how much lime we're going to put on the tatties...

Now then- I knew the soil was acidic- but never imagined it'd be as acidic as our peat lottie 'back home'

Apparently it'll be about pH3-4....so exactly the same as my peat bog lottie!!!!! No wonder the blueberries are doing well!...and my hands look like sandpaper!!!!

He said it's lovely grass - and no wonder the cows love eating it ( when we allowed them to graze)...it's about 40%clover -and so very high in Nitrogen.
( I think he was rather shocked to see me doing the digging and talking about NPK...so not such a dumb blond lady of leisure after all!!!!)

[tootles]

I used builders lime (chaux) - it's cheaper!

The old boys here are still perplexed that it is me that has terraced and tended the plot here!

[Eyren]

I'm just waiting to see our old boys' faces when I get out the hammer and nails and start building my compost bin! Mr E and I share digging duties pretty evenly, because he's too much of a gentleman to just sit back and leave me to do all the heavy work - but I do most of the planning and planting 'cos he's more interested in eating the results than in the minutiae of gardening

[Nicos]

I used builders lime (chaux) - it's cheaper!

The old boys here are still perplexed that it is me that has terraced and tended the plot here!

He's just dropped off a couple of bags of that for me..warning me to use goggles and gloves and throw it downwind!...awww..it's like having a big brother keeping a caring eye on me!!! ( thought I could do with them whilst he was getting some for a neighbour!)
peeps are so kind aren't they??

[Paulottie]

Nonetheless, received wisdom says lime can cause scab on tatties.

Plus builders lime is indeed very caustic and stronger than garden lime...don't breathe it certainly. I wouldn't be attempting it at this time of year anyway...more autumn and a ph test following spring.

Mais... je męlerai moi de mes onions.

Glad your getting on avec les voisins....you seen/read 'Jean de Florette'

[Jardiniere]

i told one of my french friends today that i was going to plant potatoes on Friday and she told me in no uncertain terms that i couldnt because the moon wasnt right.....and now you've all worried me that my new soil might be too acidic.....isnt gardening difficult?
My soil is river loam ...in 2003 the plot was totally flooded and my soil went off down river and what i have now came from the upper Lot valley somewhere.....will that be acid or what????

[kentvegplot]

Can you actually test it? If you really have a pH of 3-4 that's really acidic and hardly anything likes that.

From memory, I think the potatoes like around 6.5 and most veg around 7-7.5, with around 8.5 for brassicas (someone else might correct those figures).

I personally wouldn't lime until I'd tested it - the little kits from the garden centre are pretty good.

[Nicos]

Well...now you mention it- the farmer guy said put a handful of soil in half a bucket of water and use one of those pH tester sstrips for fish tanks...said they're much cheaper- and easier!!


Liming....well- wasn't expecting builders lime- and am a bit worried about the cat walking on the grass which my neighbour intends to cover in the stuff to kill off his moss
As it's so caustic I'm thinking of the cat licking its 'dirty'paws

As you say...may well leave the spud area- and lime the rest very lightly.
I do have a probe tester- not sure if it's over here or in UK...I'll have a look around. I know they're not very accurate , but it'll at least give an idea. (Local garden centre is a whole morning/afternoon trip out due to the distance away)