Oi^ RURAL NEW-YORKER 
What Lime Shall I Buy? 
Lump, Slaked, Hydrated, Ground Limestone 
Part I. 
Much time, ink and paper have been 
used in discussing this lime question. 
Queries by the thousands have been asked 
and answered, and yet we see in almost 
every issue of every agricultural paper of 
how, when, where, what kind and what 
quantity of lime to use. This is as it 
should be, for there is no (piestion so vital 
to farmers, especially those of the sour 
soil districts (which is fully four-fifths of 
all the agricultural soils), as this one of 
lime. 
While I am unable to discuss lime at 
all thoroughly from a .scientific point, 
it is my fortune (or misfortune) 
to be in a very “sour” section which is so 
situated that nearly all and every kind of 
lime has been u.sed. P.eing a farmer, and 
keenly interested in all his troubles, and 
having used nearly all forms of lime. I 
couldn't help but watch the results of 
these different limes, and have learned 
one thing beyond dispute, viz: It pays to 
use Ifme, and nnn form of lime will give 
results looked for, proridcd it is applied 
right and in a fiaehj poirdrred form. The 
finer each individual particle of lime is. 
whether it be in the form of limestone, 
burned lime or hydrated lime, the more 
completely will it become incorporated 
throughout the soil and the more quickly 
and thoi'oughly will it do its work. For 
then each tiny particle of lime will readily 
come in contact with each tiny particle of 
soil, and each particle of hamas therein 
and commence its action upon them at 
once. This is the ideal condition we must 
strive for. To . those obtaining this con¬ 
dition success is absolutely sure to come. 
Many of us carry the impression that 
lime is a fertilizer, and will take the place 
of it. This is erroneous. Still another 
class thinks that lime alone will bring an 
exceedingly impoverished soil back to its 
one-time feidility. This is a mistake. 
Lime will help do it. but not alone in 
itself. Yet again, another class believe 
that .soil that is extremely 'high in* fer¬ 
tility, where heavy sod is readily ob¬ 
tained, or jjerhaps where large amounts 
of green stuff or mamii’es have been 
plow'ed under, is not in need of lime. 
Wrong again. Lime is needed, and need¬ 
ed badly, in all soils which are not un¬ 
derlaid with lime rock, and I am told 
that even in those sections it will pay to 
use lime occasiomtlly. 
Especially to those who practice the 
plowing under of heavy growth.s of rye, 
clover, vetch or weeds, or use heavily of 
manure, and where in connection with the 
above, heavy applications of fei’tilizer are 
used, do I urge to use lime. It will in¬ 
crease your clover i)roducti(»u beyond be¬ 
lief. In the case of such soils so treated 
I find three quarts of clover seed per 
acre give a perfect m.ass of plants. Why 
sow more? 
The different forms of lime used agri¬ 
culturally may be divided as follows: 
1. Ground or pulverized limestone. 
2. Burned limestone, commonly known 
as lump lime, caustic lime or quicklime. 
.”>. Hydrated lime or slaked lime. 
4. Marl, 
n. Wood ashes. 
t). Waste lime from tanneries, soda- 
ash works, sugar beet factories and the 
like. 
Before we take up the different forms 
of lime it might be well to explain that 
pure limestone (nature seldom made it 
pure) will analyze 100 per cent calcium 
carbonate, which, when completely 
burned, loses 44 pei- cent of its weight, 
which passes off in the form of carbon 
dioxide gas. The 50 per cent which is 
left is calcium oxide, commonly known 
as lump lime; burned limestone, caustic 
or quicklime. Thus, 100 pounds of pure 
lime rock, after being properly burned, 
will weigh 56 pounds, which is this ptire 
lime or calcium oxide. Lime rock as na¬ 
ture left it in the earth usually will an¬ 
alyze no to 05 per cent calcium carbon¬ 
ate, yielding, after burning, about 50 to 
52 per cent calcium oxide. 
I would here like to bring out the im¬ 
portant fact, which is also a question 
(Tften asked me, L e.. will ground lime¬ 
stone act as quickly or become available 
as readily ;is burned limestone? I ans¬ 
wer yes. provided the lime rock is ground 
fine enough, because the chemists tell us 
that when calcium oxide (lime) is ap¬ 
plied to the soil it almost immediatel.v 
changes back to its natural or carbonate 
form. Then .scienti.sts tell us that before 
the burned limestones and the hydrated 
limes perform their duties they must go 
back from the calcium t>xide form- to cal¬ 
cium carbonate or natural lime rock form. 
Whj’, then, will not finely i>ulverized 
limestone act as quickly and thoroughl.v 
as burned limestone? I believe it will. 
Noav comes the question of what kind of 
lime shall we use. 
PuLVERizKt) OR Ground Limestone.— 
This form is the raw rock pulverized to a 
very fine i)o\\ d('r, or should be to be avail¬ 
able. and is manufactured in scores and 
perhaps hundi-eds of places scattered over 
the entire limestone belts east of the ^lis- 
sissippi. It is .iust as good a form as 
any, and will gi\e you .just as good re¬ 
sults prorided it is ground fine enough. 
If you can get it as fine as wheat flour it 
will act as (piickly as burned limestone 
or hydrated lime. However, one should 
use about double as much of the ground 
limestone as of the burned limestone, and 
about one-third more than of the hydrat¬ 
ed. This does not mean that it is abso¬ 
lutely necessary to use 4,000 or 5,000 
pounds of ground limestone to the acre. 
I have seen in several localities where 
1,000 pounds of it gave good results. One 
and a half or two tons is bettor, however, 
as it costs practically no more labor, 
after you get it J:o the field, to spread 
two tons than it does one-half ton, and 
in view of the fact that two tons will cer- 
taTnly give more lasting results than 
one-half ton it would be advisable to use 
two tons. This is a safe form .to use. 
You cannot get on too much. In fact, 
there really is not much danger of get¬ 
ting on too much oftany form. Then, too, 
the ground rock form is the most pleas¬ 
ant and agreeable form to use, as it does 
not irritate man or beast, nor corrode 
machinery as much as the caustic forms. 
However, it is quite necessary to have a 
lime sower to apply it. especially the very 
finely pulverized brands, and these are 
the only brands to use. Avoid the coarse¬ 
ly ground sand-like article. In no case 
would I use the ciairselj' ground material 
unle.ss I lived very near a grinding i»lant. 
where I could haul it directly from the 
grinder to my farm, thereby saving rail¬ 
road freight entirely and getting it at 
145 
first cost, etc., in event of which Q would 
be able to apply very large amounrs. - In 
fact, the key to this whole lime (piestion 
lies largely in freight rates and distance 
of wagon haul. (let the stuff from the 
producing plant which can give you the 
cheapest freight rate, always bearing in 
mind, of coursi*. that you can get, in 
every case, a finely pulverized article. It 
will be to one’s advantagi* to jiay a trifle 
more freight for a finely ground article 
than to [lay a lesser freight rati' for an 
article in a “sand-like” condition. For 
those who are handicapped with a long 
wagon haul, say six mih's or more, or 
up especially long and steeji hills. I would 
suggest the use of burned limestone, 
which is taken up further along. This 
pulverized limestone should be bought for 
.$1.25 per ton, or thereabouts, in bulk car¬ 
load lots, or 2)4 cents per one per cent of 
calcium oxide content. To this must be 
added the freight. v. ,r. uickey. 
Friend i(to professor, whose lecture. 
“How to Stop the War,” has just con¬ 
cluded) : Congratulate y<)u. old man— 
went splendidly. \t one time I wa.s 
rather an.xions ^or you." I’rofessor: 
“Thanks, but 1 don't know why you 
should have been concerned.” Friend : 
“Well, a rumor went around the room 
that th(' war would be ended before your 
lectu re.”—Punch. 
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